


After Effects (Rewrite)

by purplelightsaberdontcare (buckyismymainman)



Series: After Effects (Rewrite) [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Anywho everyone's trying to get these two crazy kids together, Bucky's still an idiot y'all and this one's going to be slower burn than the last one, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, I didn't want to delete the original, I hate writing slow burn, Just wanted to put that out there, Rewrite of After Effects, Slow Burn, Swearing, That yay was sarcastic, You can read this without reading the original version, why did i think this was a good idea?, yay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-30
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-07-20 23:17:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 54,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16147619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buckyismymainman/pseuds/purplelightsaberdontcare
Summary: Bucky Barnes has been living in Wakanda for some time now, but after the events of Infinity War he's back with the Avengers. He misses Wakanda, he misses the people, his misses Shuri's lab and her constant Vine references that he doesn't understand, but laughs at anyway. Back at the Avengers's compound he meets a new recruit named Mina, and is instantly attracted to her, but Bucky isn't the same person he was before becoming the Winter Soldier, and decides it's best to just stay away from Mina.Mina has admired James "Bucky" Barnes for ages now. She remembered visiting the site at the Smithsonian and reading about him and Captain America. She never thought she'd get a chance to meet him, let alone work with him. Now she and Bucky have been paired up to go on a mission to Wakanda to help protect the vibranium from a group of insurgents hellbent on getting some for themselves.Will Bucky give into his feelings for Mina or will he continue to torture himself by thinking he's not good enough for her?





	1. Prologue

Mina’s car approached the Avengers’ compound slowly.  She could hear the gravel crunching under her tires as she made her way through the trees toward the large structure she had only seen photos of.  It was even more impressive in person, and she couldn't quite believe that she was seeing it with her own eyes.  

The guard at the front gate had waved her through like he had been expecting her arrival.  Maybe he had.  Steve had told her that she could join them whenever she wanted.  If she wanted to.  She still remembered him coming into her parents' pizza shop and offering her a position on the team.  He had told her that even if she didn't join up with them that she should come and train to learn how to control her abilities so she didn't hurt anyone that she loved.

The decision to come and join the team officially had not been made lightly.  Mina had discussed it with her parents extensively in the weeks following Steve's impromptu visit.  She may have been twenty-five but she still respected their opinion.

The front door of the compound opened and Steve stepped out.  He shielded his eyes from the bright sunlight and moved down the stairs making his way over to where Mina had parked her car.  He smiled at her as she stepped out, “You came.”

She shifted from foot to foot nervously.  “Yeah, this is something that I’ve wanted for a while now, and being apart of the Avengers is an honor.”

“Well come on in and I’ll introduce you to everyone.”  He led her inside and down the main hall toward the common room where everyone had assembled.  Steve opened the door and said, “Everyone, I’d like you to meet Mina Gaspari, our newest recruit.”

“Hello,” she waved a bit awkwardly, suddenly becoming very shy over all the attention she was getting.

Tony Stark stood up and walked over to them.  “It’s nice to meet you Miss Gaspari, welcome to the team.”

One by one the others stood up and moved over to her and introduced themselves.  She met Sam Wilson, Natasha Romanoff, Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, Bruce Banner, Thor, Clint Barton, and Peter Parker.

“You’ll meet Nick Fury and Maria Hill later this week,” Steve informed her.  “And Bucky’s away right now. He’s running a solo opp in Wakanda at the moment.”

Mina froze at the name Bucky.  “Do you mean James Buchanan Barnes?”

Steve looked a little worried at first.  “Yes, is that a problem?” He hoped it wasn’t.  He knew there were still some people out there that weren’t thrilled the former Winter Soldier was currently a member of the Avengers even though he had been deemed a prisoner of war and his actions were not his own since he was brainwashed by HYDRA.

“No!”  She said quickly, all eyes in the room were on her.  Her cheeks heated, she was going to look like a total fangirl.  “It’s just, uh, that I looked up to him as a teenager.”

The others shared smirks while Steve looked stunned, “You-you looked up to Bucky?”

She looked down, wishing the ground would swallow her up.  “I read about him in the Smithsonian when I was a teenager.  He’s one reason why I wanted to join the military when I was younger.”

“Barnes is going to love this,” Natasha said.

Mina was mortified, “Please don’t tell him!  I don’t want to make him uncomfortable or make him think I’ll be some crazy stalker.”

“Come on Mina, let’s go get some of your things and take them to your new room.”  He gently guided her out of the room and when they were a safe distance away from the others Steve said, “I’ll make sure they behave when Buck comes back.”

Mina relaxed, “Thank you, Captain Rogers.”

“Call me Steve, you’re apart of the team now.”

Mina popped the trunk of her car and looked up at him.  They shared a brief smile before he helped her unload her things and showed her to her new room.


	2. Chapter One

Bucky was feeling slightly frustrated that the others had called him back from Wakanda for one of Tony’s parties.  “You need to come back,” Steve had insisted on the phone.

“Steve, I’m a little busy here at the moment.  I can’t come back for some stupid party.” T’Challa had looked over at him with a raised brow.

“It’s mandatory.  We have a new recruit and you have to meet her,” Steve’s voice was adamant about this.

“I don’t see you calling up T’Challa and telling him he needs to come to this function.  Last time I checked he was a member too.”  He was hoping that that would get him out of going to this thing.

“Is he there with you?”  Steve asked.

“Yes….”  Bucky knew where this was headed.

“Put me on speaker.”

Bucky rolled his eyes, but did as his friend instructed, “You’re on speaker.”

“T’Challa can you spare Bucky for a day, two tops?”

T’Challa looked over at Bucky knowing he wasn’t going to like his response.  “I believe we can.”

“ _ Et tu,  _ T’Challa?”

T’Challa shrugged his shoulders, “Go have fun, meet this new recruit, and come back when it’s over.  We’ll be fine here without you.”

And that was how Bucky wound up at the Avengers’ compound.  Steve and Sam greeted him out on the landing pad as soon as Bucky’s Quinjet landed.  “I’m still mad at you,” he told Steve as he approached the two men.

“Oh you’ll thank us later,” Sam said with a mischievous grin.

Bucky looked at the other man in confusion, “What’s that supposed to me?”

Steve wrapped his arm around Bucky’s shoulders, shooting a glare at Sam before heading inside with Bucky.  “Ignore him. Let’s just get you ready before the party tonight.”

Almost immediately Pietro appeared out of thin air.  He had a grin that had matched Sam’s. “Did you tell him about Mina?”

Bucky looked up at Steve, “Mina?”

Steve sighed, “The new recruit you’ll be meeting tonight.  Her name is Mina Gaspari.”

“And she looks up to you,” Pietro was practically bouncing up and down.  “You’re like her hero.”

Steve slapped Pietro upside the head, “We promised her we wouldn’t say anything.”

Bucky pulled away from his friend, “Wait, wait, wait.”  He looked between the three men in the hallway. “You called me back here so I could meet this woman, who apparently looks up to me?”  He threw his hands up in the air, “We’re dealing with something important in Wakanda. The threat against the Vibranium is no joke, Steve.”

“We know that, and so does T’Challa.  He could have told me no the other night when I called, but he didn’t.  And the other reason why we called you back is because she’ll be going to Wakanda with you tomorrow evening.  She’s going to be your backup.”

“I don’t need backup on this mission,” Bucky frowned.  “I’ve been doing fine on my own.”

“Her skills will be an asset,” Steve argued.  “Just trust us on this. T’Challa has already cleared it.  When you head back to Wakanda, she will be going with you.”

“Why can’t someone else come?  Why do I get the new kid on the block?”

Steve began pushing his friend down the hall, “No arguing, it’s already been decided.”

Sam and Pietro followed along after them, “You’ll be thanking us, Barnes.”  Sam grinned at him. “She’s a looker.”

Bucky frowned, “And how old is she?”   


“Twenty-four,” all three men informed him.  “She’s really sweet,” Steve told him. “She was shy at first so don’t be surprised if she’s like that with you, especially since she looks up to you.”  Steve slapped his best friend on the back, “Take a shower, get some rest, and do wear something nice tonight for the party.”   


The three men left Bucky alone.  He hadn’t liked the looks on their faces, they were planning something, and he wasn’t sure he was going to like it.

 

On the floor above Bucky’s room, Wanda was helping Mina pick out a dress for the party that night.  Mina didn’t have many dresses, they made her uncomfortable. She didn’t think she could fight in them and she would rather be prepared for all situations.  

“Do I really have to wear a dress Wan? I have some nice jeans I could throw on.”   


“Yes you do,” her friend huffed.  “It’s only for a few hours and then you can come back here, put on your sweats, and be an introvert like you usually are.”   


There was a knock on the door.  “Is everyone decent?” Pietro called through the door.   


“Yes!”  Mina responded.  Pietro entered and grinned when he saw the dresses his twin sister was holding up.  “Help me,” she begged her friend. “She’s trying to force me into one of those medieval torture devices.”   


“Sorry Little Mina, but you are on your own with this one.  And you might want to look nice for tonight,” Pietro wiggled his eyebrows.   


“Why?”  The two women asked in confusion.   


“Guess who just got back from his mission in Wakanda for the party tonight?”  His grin only widened.   


Butterflies started to flutter in Mina’s stomach, and she felt like she may throw up.  “Bucky?” She squeaked.   


“Bingo,” Pietro said.  “Steve, Sam, and I just greeted him.  He’ll be coming to the party tonight.”   


“Oh, now I’m definitely not going,” Mina shook her head, she felt like she was having a mini panic attack.  “Oh no, I’m not ready for this. I was nervous enough before, but now I’m going to be a wreck.”   


Wanda rolled her eyes, “Come on Peter is looking forward to seeing you.  It’s been a few weeks since he was last here, and you know he loves these parties.  He wanted to be present for your first one. You can’t bail out now.”   


Mina took in a deep breath.  Her friend was right, Peter was coming and she wanted to see the youngest member of the team.  “Okay, let me see the dresses again.” Wanda gave her a triumphant smile and held up the options for Mina to see.

  
  


The party was in full swing by the time Bucky arrived.  He had lingered in his room a little bit longer than he needed to.  He didn’t want to go out there and face down all those people. Especially the new girl.

She looked up to him?

Why would anyone look up to him?  He was a complete mess. He was better off forgotten.

Steve had come to find him when he realized that his friend was stalling in his room.  “It’ll be fun,” Steve had assured him. “Stop worrying so much.”

Bucky ran his fingers through his long hair as soon as he realized just how many people were attending this function.  He also noted that he needed to cut his hair in an effort to start over.

His eyes scanned the room, he saw several of the Avengers that he knew like Vision, Wanda, and Bruce.  Then his eyes fell on a girl with long blue-black hair, and the brightest turquoise eyes he had ever seen.  She was sitting on the bar, her feet swinging back and forth. She had her eyes trained on Pietro Maximoff, laughing at something he was saying.

He knew immediately that this was the girl that the others had been telling him about when he had arrived, and they hadn’t lied.  She was a looker, especially when she laughed, she looked so carefree.

Steve noticed his friend staring at Mina.  “That’s Mina Gaspari, the girl we were telling you about earlier.  She’s been training with Wanda mostly since their powers are similar.”   


Bucky looked at Steve, “She’s Italian?”   


“Her parents immigrated from Italy, but she was born in New York.  They owned a little restaurant in New York City, but after the attack with the Chitauri, they moved away from the city.  She actually protected a lot of people during that attack with her abilities, we just never knew. She laid low, that was until Thanos decided to come and try to wipe out half the population.  She’s really sweet.”   


Bucky looked over at his friend and saw the gleam in his eye, “No.”   


Steve laughed, “I didn’t even say anything!”   


“I know that look, it’s the look you get when you have a plan and you know I’m not going to like it.  So the answer is no.”   


“I was just going to say you should go talk to her, she’s pretty and you’ve been single since 1945,” Steve grinned at him.  “I think it’s time you hopped back in the saddle.”   


Bucky rolled my eyes, “May I remind you that I am technically over a hundred years old right now?”   


“But you don’t look a day over thirty,” Steve joked.  “Come on loosen up, it doesn’t matter, we’re biologically different.  If she has a problem with the age difference she can tell you, but at least talk to her.”

Bucky decided right then and there he was going to try and keep Mina at arm's length as much as possible.

 

On the other side of the room Mina was laughing at Pietro, he was doing impersonations of each of the Avengers, some of them so ridiculous she couldn’t help but laugh.  She had become good friends with him since she had been working with Wanda on controlling her powers. There were some similarities between their powers and Mina was so grateful for all the help Wanda had been.   


Mina looked around the room and noticed that Bucky and Steve had entered the room.  Her heart leaped in her chest. She knew he was coming, but seeing him standing there in the flesh was something else.  She couldn’t believe that he was actually here. 

Steve noticed her looking and waved at her, she smiled and waved back. Besides Wanda, Peter, and Pietro, Mina was closest to Steve.  Pietro followed her gaze and said, “Oooh, look who it is. Little Mina’s crush.” He turned back to her and smirked. He loved to tease her about Bucky.   


She went to kick Pietro, but he zipped out of the way.  “Shut up,” she could feel her cheeks heating. “I do not have a crush on Sergeant Barnes.”   


Wanda walked over, her hand in Vision’s.  “Pietro, stop teasing Mina.” Wanda turned to Mina and smiled, “How are you liking your first Tony Stark party?”   


“It’s… like I thought it would be,” she said honestly.  “Lavish, drinks, games, I don’t think I expected anything less to be honest.”   


“Tony does know how to throw a good party,” Vision said.    


“Hey everyone,” Steve smiled as he and Bucky joined them.  “I thought I’d bring Bucky over for proper introductions.”   


“It’s an honor to meet you, Sergeant Barnes,” Mina said sticking her hand out to shake his.   


Bucky hesitated for a moment but shook her hand.  “Call me Bucky, I’m not in the military anymore.”   


Steve watched the two of them interact with one another.  He could see the admiration in her eyes. He went to say something when Peter Parker hopped up onto the counter with her, he had just arrived.  “‘Sup Witchy Woman?”   


She ruffled his hair, “‘Sup Spidey-Boy?”   


He shoved her off of him, “I am Spider-Man!”   


“Nah kid, you’re Spidey-Boy.”  She grinned at him, and Bucky watched their interaction.  It was like watching two siblings bicker. He could tell Peter liked it.   


“Children could we not roughhouse on the bar please?”  Tony Stark called out to them.   


“Sorry Mr. Stark,” they parroted and then began to laugh while jinxing each other.   


Mina turned back to Steve, “Are we training tomorrow?”   


“If you want,” he responded.  “We’ll see how things go.”   


She nodded and hopped off the bar, looking at where Pietro was fooling with the music.  “Pietro! Don’t you dare change that music!” She and Peter rushed over trying to stop Pietro from changing the music from classic rock to some type of EDM music that most people enjoyed these days.   


Steve turned back to Bucky, but discovered that his friend had slipped off somewhere else.  He let out a little sigh before turning and enjoying the party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a lot of the rewrite written, but I'm gonna update it slowly. I'm posting the first 3 or four chapters tonight.


	3. Chapter Two

When Mina woke the next morning she put on a pair of leggings, a tank top, and a pair of black Puma’s and went to find Steve.  As she was tying her long hair back into a ponytail she nearly ran into Thor in the hall. She smiled up at the taller man, “Hey Thor.”   


He returned her smile with one of his own.  He had grown fond of Mina, and he liked how much shorter she was compared to him.  Some days he would tease her and hold things out of her reach until her eyes started to glow turquoise.  He also liked how  Loki was secretly terrified of her. “Hello Mina, off to training with Wanda?”   


“Steve,” she clarified.  “Have you seen him by any chance?”   


“I believe he is in the gym.”   


“Thanks,” she brushed past him as he wished her luck.  When she entered the gym she saw Steve working with some weights.  “Hey Steve,” she said to get his attention.   


Steve put the weights down and turned toward, “Morning Mina, did you sleep all right?”   


“Yeah, the party really took it out of me, are you ready to begin training?”   


“Actually, Tony wanted to see you in his office.  He has a request.” There was a look in his eyes that had excitement bubbling up inside of her.   


Mina began bouncing, “Am I getting a mission?”   


Steve chuckled, he knew that Mina was chomping at the bit to get away from the compound and finally go out on a mission.  “Yeah, I think he does have something in mind for you,” he couldn’t help but smile at her enthusiasm.   


“Finally!”  She clapped happily.  “What is it? Do you know?”   


Steve chuckled, “I do, we’ve been discussing this for about a week now.  But I think you should go talk to him and find out what it is.”   


Mina nodded and dashed off down the hall toward the offices.  Pepper greeted her when she reached the door to Tony’s office, “Is Tony in there?  Steve told me that he wanted to speak with me.”   


“He is,” Pepper said with a smile.  “You can head on in.”   


Mina pushed the door open and said, “Hey Tony, Steve told me you wanted to speak with me?”   


Tony turned around and smiled at Mina, “I did, come on in and take a seat.”  Tony’s office had a wall of windows that looked out over the lawns of the Avengers’ compound.  There was a huge A standing tall in the distance. “I wanted to let you know that I have a mission for you.”  Mina smiled brightly. “You will be accompanying Bucky to Wakanda to help them protect their vibranium. They’ve gotten intel that a group of insurgents are going to try and attack, and while Wakanda certainly can handle this themselves, T’Challa requested some extra help.”   


Mina sat there speechless, she was going to go to Wakanda and she was going to be working with her hero?  She had to be dreaming. “And you thought I’d be the best person to go on this mission with Bucky?”   


Tony nodded, “Your abilities will be an asset with helping them.  Wanda, Pietro, and Steve have all sang your praises, they think you’re ready.  The question is do you think you’re ready?”   


She nodded her head, “I do, I’ve been waiting for this day for months now.  I’m ready to help in any way I can.”   


“Good, you’ll leave tonight with Bucky on one of the Quinjets,” Tony informed her.  “You leave at eight, so I’d go pack what you’ll need, and I’ll have Steve bring you all the necessary information on Wakanda and what’s going on over there.”   


Mina nodded her head and left Tony’s office to go pack.  On the way back to her room she ran into Peter, “Where are you going in such a hurry?”   


“Tony gave me an assignment.  I’m going to Wakanda tonight with Bucky,” she said giddily.   


“Lucky!  I want to go to Wakanda.  T’Challa is cool, he thinks me and his sister would get along.”   


“I haven’t had a chance to meet him yet.  But he seems like a really cool dude,” she said as she pushed her door open.  She faced the landing pad where one of the Quinjets was being prepared for her and Bucky’s journey.  “Steve told me that it’s really cool there, and that Shuri’s lab is no joke. Maybe you can convince Tony to let you come visit me while I’m there,” she joked.   


“I’m pretty sure my Aunt May would never let me leave the country again, not after Thanos.”  Mina had met Aunt May when she had come to visit Peter on several occasions. She worried about her nephew a lot, especially since she knew what kind of lifestyle he led.   


“I’m sure she’d be okay with you coming to Wakanda, especially if she thinks it’s safe,” Mina told him as she began to throw things in one of her bags.  She didn’t want to take too much, but she wasn’t sure what she would need while she was there.   


There was a knock on the open door and Steve poked his head in, “Hey Peter, I didn’t realize you were still here.”   


“I’m here for a few more days before I head back to Aunt May’s place,” he said.  “Keep in contact with me, and take photos. I want to see Shuri’s lab!” He waved goodbye and then disappeared out the door.   


Steve took a seat on Mina’s bag as she packed.  “Are you excited?”   


“Yes,” she said with the biggest smile.  “And a little bit nervous, but not because I’ll be facing down bad guys,” she admitted.  “I’m a little nervous working with Bucky.”   


Steve chuckled, “You’ll do fine Mina.  Trust me this is no big deal.”   


She nodded and tucked a piece of stray hair behind her ears.  “I know, but this is my first mission, and it’s with him. I don’t want to make a fool of myself, or do something that will make him uncomfortable around me.  He seemed a little on edge last night, and then he just up and disappeared.” Her cheeks reddened, “Not that I was actively looking for him or anything.”   


Steve chuckled, “Bucky’s cool, don’t worry.  You’ll both do fine.” Steve had a way of easing her worries whenever she brought them to his attention. “And if you need anything Wanda and I are only a phone call away.”   


“I know,” she said.  
  
  
Steve went to Bucky’s room and sat down on the bed.  “She’s looking forward to this mission,” he said.  


Bucky arched an eyebrow, “Is she now?”  He tried not to look his friend in the eye as he continued to pack some extra items for Wakanda that he forgot to bring with him when he left a few months prior.   


“She’s nervous about working with you, but I think she’s happy that her first mission is with you,” Steve told him.   


“I don’t know why you seem so excited about this. We’ll be working most of the time.  I probably won’t even see her socially while we’re there. And then once we’ve taken care of this problem we’ll probably only see one another in passing unless we have a mission together again.”  Hopefully by then Steve would have calmed down and stopped trying to convince him that he needed to try and date someone.   


Steve gave his friend a look, “Really?  That’s how we’re going to play this? I saw how you were looking at her last night before you disappeared on me, and I’m telling you to go for it.”   


“And we’re not going to have this discussion,” Bucky furrowed his brow.  “She’s too young.”   


Steve shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose.  “She’s twenty-four to your thirty, that’s not a large age gap.”   


Bucky let out an unamused snort, “Are you forgetting the little fact that I was born in 1917?”   


“Are you forgetting that we’re not like other people?”  Steve shot back.   


Bucky sighed, “There is no talking you out of pestering me about this is there?”   


“Nope,” Steve grinned.   


Bucky slung his bags over his shoulder, his metal arm gleaming in the light.  “Please drop this Steve, this is purely business.”   


Steve shrugged his shoulders, “Whatever you say man.”   


Bucky walked out to the landing pad and saw Pietro standing there talking with Mina.  She was smiling at him, her bags at her feet. There were only two, she was a light packer like he was.  Pietro hugged her and then was gone in an instant, but not before shooting a smirk in Bucky’s direction.   


She looked up to see Bucky standing there and she broke out into a smile, “Hello Bucky!”   


He walked past her as he entered the Quinjet.  “Hello,” he replied a bit gruffly.   


She stared after him as he disappeared into the Quinjet.  Frowning she picked up her bags and followed after him, the door closing a few seconds after she had climbed on board.  She set her bags down next to his and took a seat in the co-pilot seat. “I have to warn you I’m not the best co-pilot.” She looked over at him and tried to manage a smile, “Steve tried to teach me along with Tony, but I’m hopeless with these things.”   


Bucky started to press some buttons and lifted the jet into the air.  He wouldn’t even look in her direction. “Don’t worry, these things can pilot themselves.  Just wait until we’re up in the air before unstrapping and walking around. We’ll be in Wakanda in a few hours.”   


The two of them fell silent and Mina was a little disappointed.  She knew that he wouldn’t be like he was in the videos she’d seen of him, but she didn’t think he’d be so distant and cold towards her.  She thought that since they’d be working together that they’d at least talk and get to know one another better.   


“So,” she dragged out the ‘Os’ for a moment.  “What was it like growing up in the twenties and thirties?”  He looked over at her and arched an eyebrow. Her cheeks heated a little bit, “I’m just trying to learn a little bit about you.  I figured since we were teaming up for the duration of this mission that we could at least be a little familiar with each other.”   


He sighed, “There’s not much to say.  It was less technologically advanced than today.”   


She frowned when that’s all he offered.  “Well what was the military like?” Silence.  “All right, fine.” She unbuckled and went towards the back of the Quinjet muttering under her breath in Italian.  He picked up words like ‘jerk’, ‘stupid’, and even an ‘asshole’, but he pretended like he couldn’t understand her.    


Bucky turned his head and watched as she angrily dug through her bag and pulled out a book.  Her brows were furrowed and she was still muttering under her breath about him. When she went to turn around Bucky snapped back to attention watching the sky in front of them.   


She plopped down in her seat and began to read not saying another word to him.  After an hour of silence he heard her breathing soften and he looked over to see that she had fallen asleep with the book on her chest.  She looked peaceful, her hair spread out around her, some of it falling in her face.   


Bucky let out a little sigh, he was screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first few chapters may seem familiar if you read the original but the farther in we get the more it will change.


	4. Chapter Three

They had been flying for several hours now, and Mina was still asleep with her book resting on her chest.  Sometimes she would snore and it would make Bucky smile, but he would shake his head and focus on something else.  He didn’t need to be thinking of her like that.

It was hard to focus on anything else but her though.  With her in such close proximity to him, he could smell her perfume, and she would murmur in her sleep.  Every time she shifted positions he was aware of her.

She cursed Steve and Tony for assigning her this mission with him.

When Wakanda finally came into view Bucky gently nudged her and said, “We’re here.”   


Mina sat up and stretched her arms above her head, “How long was I asleep?”  Her voice was hoarse from sleep and she gave him a sleepy look. Her hair was mussed in several places from where she had moved a couple of times in her sleep.   


Bucky tried not staring at her as he responded, “A couple of hours.”   


So they were back to short answers.  She sighed and stood to go put her book back in her bag before they landed.  She had brought a couple with her, it had taken all her self-control to not pack another bag of just books.  She had told herself that she would be too busy with the mission to even worry about reading anything. 

She rejoined Bucky and stared out the window gapping at the Wakandan countryside. “It’s beautiful.” It was night, but with the way the moon was glowing it gave the country a magical feel.

The jungles had a glow about them, and she could see lights coming from several of the houses.  She thought she even caught movement of people down there, but it was too dark for her to be sure.   
Bucky stayed silent and guided the Quinjet to the city where they would be staying.  T’Challa had graciously opened up some guest rooms for their use in the palace. He wondered which room T’Challa had put her in and hoped that it was far away from his.

As Bucky went to land the jet he saw Shuri and T’Challa standing on the platform with several of the Dora Milaje waiting for them to arrive.  He noticed Mina fidgeting in her seat as she stared at T’Challa and his sister.   


He stood, “Relax, he’s not formal.”  With that he moved to the back of the Quinjet and grabbed his bags.   


They exited together and T’Challa smiled at Bucky, “Welcome back Mr. Barnes.”

Bucky smiled at T’Challa, and Mina wondered if it was only reserved for people he was close too.  “How many times do I have to tell you to call me Bucky?” They embraced, patting each other on the back.   


T’Challa pulled away first, his hands still on Bucky’s arms.  “I do it to annoy you,” T’Challa said with a grin.   


Shuri was next and he greeted her like he would a sister.  “How is the arm treating you Bucky?”   


Bucky flexed his metal fingers, “It’s doing better since you updated it a few weeks ago.”   


“I’ve made some more adjustments and I can work on giving you a better one when you have some free time,” she began saying.   


Bucky laughed, and Mina felt a warmth spread through her at the sound.  Then she chastised herself mentally. She didn’t want to blush while she was in front of him and the King of Wakanda.  Bucky turned to her then, his smile slipping from his face as he composed his features. “This is Mina Gaspari. She’ll be my help on the mission.”   


Mina waved a bit awkwardly, unsure of what to do and said, “Hello.”   


“Miss Gasperi,” T’Challa walked over to her with a wide smile.  “Welcome to Wakanda.” He took her hand and kissed her knuckles.   


Her cheeks were definitely heating up now.  Shuri rolled her eyes and made a noise, “Stop trying to flatter her, Brother.”  Shuri walked over to them then. “Come on I’ll show you to your room.” She linked her arm through Mina’s and led her inside while 

T’Challa and Bucky followed behind them.  “So what are your abilities?”   


“Oh,” Mina looked down at her hands and summoned the turquoise flames that were her powers.  The color matched her eyes Bucky noticed. “My powers are similar to Wanda’s, but they’re a bit different, I can do things that she can’t and vice versa.”   


Shuri’s eyes lit up, “I want you to join me in my lab sometime!  I have so many ideas that you can help me with. I want to see if I can create armor that can resist magic like yours, something that can take a hit, but won’t harm the wearer.”   


Mina nodded, “Just say the word and I’m all yours.”   


Shuri started chattering away excitedly about all the things she could create now that she actually had someone with gifts around.  T’Challa watched his sister with the newcomer. He leaned a bit closer to Bucky, “So what do you think of the new girl?”   


Bucky narrowed his eyes at T’Challa, “Did Steve call you?”   


T’Challa smiled, “He may have mentioned you and a pretty girl would be showing up on my doorstep in a few hours.  But I think Steve highly downplayed how pretty Miss Gaspari actually was.”   


Bucky wanted to strangle his friend, “I already told Steve no.”   


“And Steve knows that, but he also knows you.  You’re not dead Bucky, and she clearly likes you.”  T’Challa recalled how she looked when she heard Bucky laugh, she was blushing and staring at him like T’Challa stared at Nakia.   


“Please, I just want to do what we came here to do.  I want to keep Wakanda safe, and then head home.”   


“So eager to leave Wakanda already?  I thought you liked us.” T’Challa arched an eyebrow, one side of his lips tipped upward.   


_ Eager to get as far away from Mina Gaspari as I possibly can _ , Bucky thought.  “No, I just want… I don’t know what I want to be honest.  I was excited about coming back after the party was over, but then Tony and Steve suggested Mina come with me, and I knew why Steve was saying it.  And I’m not saying Mina isn’t capable, everyone sings her praises--”   


T’Challa placed a hand on Bucky’s shoulder and they both paused.  “You’re rambling Bucky, do try not to fight whatever it is you’re feeling.  It’s not healthy.”   


Bucky glanced at Mina’s and Shuri’s retreating figures, the pair hadn’t even realized that Bucky and T’Challa had fallen behind.  “Whatever this is will pass,” he responded quietly and walked the rest of the way to his room alone.

 

When Shuri and Mina reached the room Mina would be staying in for her duration in Wakanda she couldn’t help the gasp that escaped her.  Shuri stood back and grinned, “Nice right?”

Nice was one way to put it.  The room was larger than the common room back at the compound.  It had its own living area with a flat-screen TV, walk-in closet, bathroom, and even a little place to make coffee in the morning.  “This is nicer than some of the hotels I’ve stayed in before,” she said in awe.

“We try to make our guests as comfortable as possible,” Shuri told her.

Mina walked further into the room, dropping her bags by one of the sofas.  “I don’t think I ever want to leave this room.”

Shuri chuckled, “I can’t say I blame you, the rooms here are some of the best in Wakanda.  But I’m sure you’ll love the library. Steve told T’Challa how much you love to read.”

Mina turned back to Shuri, “If I wasn’t so tired, I’d beg you to take me to the library tonight.”

“Tomorrow,” Shuri promised.  “For right now, take a shower or bath, watch some TV, and just relax.  The shades are on a timer unless you open them yourself. They should open around nine tomorrow morning.  If we need you before then someone will come get you. I’m pretty sure T’Challa will give you the day to get settled before you do any kind of work.”

Mina nodded still staring around the room in wonder, “All right.”

“Oh and before I forget here is a map of the palace.  It can also show you where others are in the palace.” She handed over a little tablet to Mina.  “Enjoy the rest of your evening.”

“Thanks Shuri, you too,” she called out before the other girl exited the room leaving her all alone.

Mina couldn’t believe that this was her room and that she was actually in Wakanda.  She walked over to her bag and dug around for her phone. Scrolling through her contacts she found Peter’s number and called him.

“What’s up Witchy Woman?  You in Wakanda?”

“Yes!”  She said excitedly.  “And you should see my room!  It’s huge, Peter. I’ve got my own TV and everything.”

“Lucky!”  She heard his fingers dancing across his computer keys.  “Did you meet Shuri?”

“Yeah, she’s the one that showed me to my room.  She and T’Challa greeted us when we arrived,” she informed him.

“And?”  He prompted wanting more information out of her.

“They’re both really nice and laid back.  Shuri wants to work with me on my powers. She wants to invent some things that could help protect people if there’s ever someone like me who is on the wrong side of the law.”

“You’re making me insanely jealous here Mina.”

“Sorry kid,” she laughed.  “I should go though, it’s late here, and I know you probably have school coming up.  So I’ll talk to you later?”

“Definitely, I want to hear all about Wakanda.”

“I’ll call you when I can,” she promised before hanging up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter of the rewrite for tonight.


	5. Chapter Four

Mina was woken up by the automatic curtains rising letting the sun stream through the windows.  Mina groaned and placed a pillow over her face. She didn’t want to wake up yet. She had been having a good dream and she wanted to get back to it.  But she knew that she had to get ready for her day and see if T’Challa or Bucky needed her to do anything.   


Mina slid out of bed and dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, she didn't want to put on her suit unless she absolutely needed too.  She tugged on her sneakers and headed out into the hallway, almost smacking into Bucky.   
“Good morning, Bucky,” she gave him a smile which he didn’t return.  She resisted the urge to groan and tear out her hair. This was definitely not how she saw this going.   


“How did you sleep?”  He asked out of politeness.   


“Fine, and you?”  Two could play at this game.   


“Fine,” they stood there in awkward silence.  “Uh, breakfast should be ready.”   


She nodded and pulled the map out of one of her back pockets.  While she was distracted Bucky admired how her jeans hugged her curves, but then he shook his head.  He shouldn't be staring at her like that. “So it looks like I need to go that way,” she pointed to her right and began walking in that direction, watching as two little dots signifying her and Bucky popped up on the map.  She stopped when she realized Bucky wasn’t coming. “Are you getting breakfast?” She turned back to him.   


He shook his head, “I was up earlier, I’ve already eaten.  T’Challa said all is quiet, so you can explore today if you like, I’ll contact you if something happens.”  With that he turned and walked away.   


Mina let out a little sigh and continued her journey through the halls until she reached the kitchen.  She discovered T’Challa standing there with a bowl of cereal and a tablet reading the world news. He looked up when he heard her enter and gave her a smile, “Good morning Miss Gaspari, how did you sleep?”   


“Please call me Mina, and I slept well.  Thank you for asking.” She looked around the state of the art kitchen with top of the line appliances.  It was every chef’s dream. “My father would pass out if he could see this kitchen.”   


T’Challa chuckled, “Steve told me that your father was a chef and had his own restaurant.  Italian, correct?”    


She nodded, her eyes drifting back to the man in front of her, “Yes.  It was a little pizzeria in New York City, but after the attack we moved to the northern part of New York and set up shop there.  I used to help my father cook.”   


“Your parents were from Italy yes?  And you were born stateside?”   


“Yes, they dreamed of living in New York and owning their own authentic Italian restaurant.  I was born a few years after they arrived.” She had heard stories from her parents many times about their decision to leave Italy and move to the States before she came along.  It wasn’t an easy decision, but one the two of them would gladly make again.   


“Do you miss them?”   


She shrugged, “They visit me a lot back at the compound, and I still go home on occasion.  I never hid what I could do from them.” She gestured to the cabinets. “What is there to eat?”   


T’Challa showed her around the kitchen and told her where everything was.  “If you ever have time there are some restaurants in the city, you should try them.  I know Bucky enjoys several of them when he’s able to go.”   


“Are you close with Bucky?”  Her curiosity got the better of her.   


“In a way yes, Bucky is Bucky.  He’s very kind, and he cares. I know he loves Wakanda and the people love him in return.  When Thanos attacked Bucky was on the frontlines ready to protect this place, and that is something I appreciated greatly.”     


Mina slumped in her seat, “He doesn’t seem to like me.”   


“Maybe he is just uncomfortable around you,” T’Challa suggested.  “You two barely know one another.”   


He did have a point, and maybe she had come off a little strong at the party and then again on the Quinjet.  She realized that this was one relationship she was going to have to ease into. “Thank you for showing me around your kitchen T’Challa.”   


“Of course Mina, and one night maybe you could teach me some of your father’s recipes and make us all a nice Italian dinner.”   


“I would like that,” she said before he exited the room.     


Once she had finished her breakfast she explored the palace a little until she found the library.  She pushed open the doors and paused when she saw the shelves upon shelves of books. The smell of parchment and ink overpowering her senses.  She stepped inside and pulled the doors shut behind her.   


She walked through the shelves and noticed that several books were written in other languages.  She found some in Italian and tugged them off the shelves before heading to the couch to curl up and read.   


She hadn’t been there long when she heard what sounded like books landing on the floor.  She set her aside and moved through the shelves to find Bucky on the floor grumbling, trying to pick them up.  He hadn’t heard her yet.   


Grinning she used her abilities to lift the books off the floor.  Bucky whirled around and she began laughing at his bewildered look.  “Sorry, I couldn’t resist. I didn’t think anyone else was in here with me.”  She made the books form a stack and waited for Bucky to take them. “Is there another way in here?”   


He nodded, “There are two entrances.”   


She stood there trying to think of something to say.  “What are you reading?”   


Bucky looked down at his stack, “Oh I wasn’t reading these, Shuri asked me to get some things for her from the library.”   


Mina toed the floor with her foot.  “Oh, well I’ll let you get back to it.”  She turned and went to walk away when she heard him sigh.   


“Are you hungry?”   


She turned back around, he had an indecipherable look on his face.  “How late is it?” She had no idea how long she had been in here for, it felt like she had just arrived.   


She thought she saw a tiny smile from him, but his usual neutral look was back.  “It’s a little past four in the afternoon.”   


Her eyes widened, she had been here that long?  Her stomach growled and she chuckled, “I guess I am a little hungry now that I think of it.”   


“I know a spot we can go to eat, T’Challa’s busy and Shuri’s too busy trying to prepare for your eventual visit that she’ll probably just eat at her lab.”  He sat the books down on one of the tables that were scattered throughout the room. “I’ll take you somewhere so you can get dinner.”   


She was shocked to hear him offering it, but she wasn’t about to miss this opportunity.  “All right, let me just put my books away.” She rushed back to her seat and scooped her books up and placed them back on the shelf hoping that her little interaction with Bucky hadn’t been a one-time occurrence.   


He was still waiting on her when she got back to where she had left him, “Ready?”  He asked. She said yes and followed him out of the palace and into the streets of Wakanda.  The streets were crowded as they made their way from the palace to wherever Bucky was taking her.  The city was a vibrant array of colors. Some of the women were wearing headscarves while others were not.  Some people had designs on their clothes while others were wearing something similar to what Mina and Bucky were dressed in.

Bucky weaved his way through the crowds like an expert.  Sometimes people would greet him with a friendly smile which he would return with one of his own.  Mina was jealous of those people. Of how easily it seemed they could talk to him and how he would respond in kind.  She wondered what it took to get him to be like that with her.

As they continued down the street Mina was tempted to take his hand so that they wouldn't get separated, but she kept her hands clenched at her sides, chewing on the inside of her cheek wondering if she should say something about being afraid of getting lost.  “Where are we going?” She asked as they reached a spot where they could walk side by side. The people had started to thin out now, and Mina was relieved.

He looked down at her, no sign of the smiling man from earlier in sight.  “There’s an outdoor food market not far from here. They have all kinds of food there, you can pick what you want.”

Mina simply nodded and didn’t ask any more questions.  She was too afraid she would be met with short answers again.  After a few more minutes of walking they came up on the stalls Bucky had been telling her about.  The smells wafting into their air from each stall were making her mouth water. This was obviously a popular spot for dinnertime because there were people everywhere.  Some were laughing and joking with friends while some were with their families.

Mina had heard of places like this before, but she had never had the pleasure of actually going to one.  Eying each of the carts she wondered which dish she should try first. They all looked too good to pass up.

She began to walk through the pathway looking over each stall with interest, Bucky was trailing along behind her waiting to see which dish she would choose for herself.  He watched as she slowed down each time something caught her eye, and he remembered how he had been the first time T’Challa had brought him here. He had eyed each stall with the same interest as Mina was currently doing.

They were coming up on the end of the stalls and an older man called out to Bucky.  He walked over and shook hands with the man, speaking in Wakanda’s native tongue. Mina had no idea he knew the language, but she guessed after being here for a while he picked up on it.  She watched their exchange wishing she knew what they were saying. The man patted Bucky on the shoulder and turned to prepare some food for him. The old man handed over two plates and Bucky turned back to her. “For you,” he said passing one of the plates to her.

She took it, murmuring her thanks before asking, “What were the two of you talking about?”

Bucky started to eat his food while heading for an empty bench to sit down on.  “He was just asking how I’d been.”   


They took their seats and Mina began to eat the food he had picked out for her.  She closed her eyes as an explosion of flavors hit her taste buds. Bucky watched as she closed her eyes and enjoyed the traditional Wakandan meal he had gotten for them.  “This is delicious,” she slowly opened her eyes and looked up at him, flashing a smile before taking another bite. They continued to eat in silence. Finally she couldn’t take the silence anymore and asked, “How come you’re so open with everyone else, but not me?” The question slipped out before she could stop it.  “Sorry,” she muttered.   


Bucky sighed, he had wondered how long it would take for her to question why he was so quiet around her.  “It’s just hard to open up to new people, and plus Steve told me how much you looked up to me. I don’t want to disappoint you.”   


Mina blinked, her cheeks heating.  Everything making perfect sense now.  “Steve told you that? No one wonder you act weird around me.”  She laughed, “Bucky, you are so frustrating.”    


“Excuse me?”  He was a little taken aback by her sudden change in demeanor.   


She shook her head, sitting her plate off to the side so she could turn and face him.  “Yes, I look up to you, and yes you run the risk of disappointing me, but that doesn’t mean you should act like an ass to me.  I looked up to Steve and he didn’t disappoint me. And I don’t have any delusions of grandeur, I don’t have some fantasy of you in my head. I just want you to be yourself around me.”   


Bucky sat there just looking at her for a moment, “I hated growing up in the twenties and thirties, compared to now that is.  Looking back on then versus now it was awful. Technology was just beginning to become a thing and cars were nothing like they are today.  Black and white TV also sucked, but we had nothing to compare it to. Once I joined the military I made lifelong friendships, and I was sure as hell shocked when Steve rescued me looking like he does now.  I just remembered him from our childhood and then in comes this six-foot man with a six pack and he says he’s Steve. I thought I was hallucinating for a moment.”   


“Well I guess it’s a good thing you had such a good friend like Steve who would come and rescue you when you got into trouble.”   


“Yeah, it is.”  He watched her as she stared out over the sky.   


“I never had that,” she said.  “I was always teased growing up, I was the nerd in school.  Always had a book in hand. It wasn’t until I joined the Avengers that I had a sense of friendship.  First with Steve, but then again it’s Steve,” she laughed and Bucky smiled. He understood what she meant.  Steve could be friends with anyone. “Then with Wanda and Pietro. Then in comes Peter who is like a little brother to me. And for the first time in my life I felt like I had a group of friends who I could hang out with and just let my hair down with.”  She looked at Bucky and said, “You had the exact opposite problem didn’t you?”   


He couldn’t lie, he had been popular in school.  Especially with the ladies. “Yeah, I was a people person, and being an athlete helped me.”   


“I tried sports, was never really good at them,” she said as she sipped from her cup of water.     


They lapsed into a comfortable silence.  Bucky was telling himself that he could be friends with her, that this was okay.  This was good. “We should head back,” she said after a moment. “No idea when we’ll be needed.”   


Bucky stood and collected their trash and together they headed back to the palace.  Bucky walked Mina to her door and left her with a simple goodnight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Taking my time with the next chapter of Siren's Lullaby because I want to get it right.


	6. Chapter Five

Shuri came to get Mina the next day, dragging Mina along to her lab.  Mina had agreed, but only for the fact the Bucky had left a note saying there was nothing to be done right now, and she didn’t want to sit around the palace with nothing to do, and she also didn’t feel comfortable enough to go exploring the city alone.  

She took her communication devices in case something happened and Bucky or T’Challa needed her.   
Bucky would be with T’Challa right now, the two of them trailing around the Wakandan countryside looking for signs of trouble.  The two of them had deemed it more important for Mina to join Shuri before she burst from excitement.

Shuri had also begged the two men to let Mina come with her to the lab when she learned that they weren’t going to be doing anything important.

“Please Brother, let her join me today.  Sooner or later you’re going to need her and then I won’t have anyone to experiment with!”

T’Challa and Bucky had shared a look, both of them knowing that they weren’t going to refuse the younger girl of allowing Mina to go to the lab with her.  “All right,” T’Challa conceded. “But if anything goes wrong and we need her, you will release her immediately.”

Shuri had jumped up and down with excitement and raced off to find Mina.   


“I want to monitor how your powers work,” Shuri was saying.  They were standing outside the lab where several targets had been set up.  “I’ll record you doing this, and from there I can start developing new tech-based off of what you can do.”  She held up her arm ready to record. “Whenever you’re ready.”   


Mina’s hands lit in those turquoise flames, she flexed her fingers letting the flames dance a little before she flung out her hand the flames launching off her fingers and toward one of the closer targets.  It instantly caught on fire, but not the normal kind. Mina’s flames stayed their turquoise color and were damn near impossible to put out. Shuri was laughing excitedly as she witnessed the powers being wielded.   


The next attack came in the form of a fireball.  Mina twisted her hands together until the flames were off her fingers and in a circle between her hands.  She threw the fireball at one of the farther targets getting the same outcome as the first one.   


Shuri put her arm down and rushed over, “Do your powers always show as this strange turquoise flame?  Or can you be more discreet?”   


“This is where Wanda and I are different.  With hers, you always see the red, but with me,” the flames disappeared, but she could still feel their warmth.  “I can make them disappear.” She flung out one hand and knocked a target over.   


“That is awesome!”  Shuri began to chatter excitedly as they made their way down to her lab.  “I can do so many things with this. Think of all the tech we could make.” She uploaded the video she had taken on a bigger monitor and watched each attack on a loop.  It was a little weird for Mina to see herself using her abilities like this.   


Shuri grabbed some paper and began to scribble some notes down.  Mina wandered around looking at all the prototypes that Shuri had started.  She noticed a new suit for T’Challa. She ran her hand over the fabric amazed that this suit was made out of vibranium.   


After a few hours of talking with Shuri about her powers and doing a few more demonstrations, Mina heard voices from above.  Shuri looked toward the stairs and said, “Okoye! Come here, you have to see this.”   


The General of the Dora Milaje descended the stairs and stared at the newcomer.  “Hello,” Mina said with a smile. “We haven’t had a chance to meet properly. I’m Mina Gaspari, I came here with Bucky a few nights ago.”   


Okoye smiled at the girl, “Hello, I’m Okoye.”  Okoye looked at Shuri, “Your brother wants you back at the palace for dinner tonight.”   


“Okay, okay, but you have to see this.”  Shuri pulled up the footage of Mina from earlier and Okoye stared at it with wide eyes.  “Isn’t this amazing? I’m working on new tech to help combat attacks like this.”   


Okoye looked toward Mina, a gleam in her eyes, “Would you like to train with the Dora Milaje?”   


“Hey!”  Shuri protested.  “I saw her first, she’s mine.”   


Mina laughed and held up her hands, “There is enough of me to go around.  I’d love to train with the Dora Milaje, it would be an honor actually.”   


Okoye looked toward Shuri, “This would be a good way to test your tech when you come up with the designs.”  Then she motioned for them to follow her, “Come along, we need to get back.”

They arrived back at the palace and Mina went to her room to change into something more comfortable before dinner.  When she entered the dining room she discovered it was just Bucky, Shuri, Nakia, Okoye, and T’Challa there.

Shuri was already chatting away about what Mina could do.  “You should have seen it! Her flames can disappear! She knocked a target over with just a simple flick of her hands.”

Mina took her seat next to Bucky and tucked some hair behind her hair.  “I do believe I have just become Shuri’s new guinea pig.”

Bucky chuckled, “Yes you have.  I’m waiting for her to tell me she has a new arm for me.”

“I’m working on one now,” Shuri announced proudly.

The conversation continued, T’Challa steering it away from that day’s activities and more towards how Mina was liking Wakanda so far.  Conversation flowed easily after that, and once dinner was over Bucky walked Mina back to her room like he had the night before and wished her goodnight.  
  
  
T’Challa met with Mina a few days later to talk about what he and Bucky had found on their little expedition while she had been with Shuri.  “Okoye tells me you’ll be working with the Dora Milaje some, is that true?”  


Mina nodded her head, “It is.  She asked me the day I worked with Shuri at her lab and I agreed. I think Shuri wants to test her tech she’s developing on them too, and this would be a perfect opportunity.”   


“Don’t let them talk you into doing anything you’re not comfortable doing,” he said with a chuckle.  “You’re here to help us with our problem, and you don’t have to do any more than that if you don’t want to.”   


“I really don’t mind,” Mina insisted, she didn’t want the others to get into trouble over what they had asked her to do.  “It’ll give me something to do when we’re not chasing down the bad guys. Plus I like Shuri, and Okoye seems cool, it’ll be an honor to study under her.”   


“Does Bucky know about the offer yet?”  T’Challa folded his hands behind his back and studied her with a smile forming on his face.   


“I haven’t had a chance to tell him yet,” she told him.  “We’ve both been so busy that we’ve barely been able to say hi to one another when we see one another in the hallways.”   


“Talk to him tonight, I’ll make sure the two of you won’t be disturbed unless it is a matter of life or death,” T’Challa told her.  “Also, tomorrow you and Bucky will be heading out with Okoye and a couple of the Dora Milaje to do border patrol. I may be paranoid, but I have this feeling that something is off.”   


“Then why don’t we go now?  What if you’re not just being paranoid?”  Mina didn’t like the idea of someone being inside Wakanda’s borders that weren’t supposed to be there.  If T’Challa had a bad feeling then they needed to check this out as soon as they could.   


T’Challa shook his head, “It’s fine, I already have people checking the border, I just want a second set of eyes to make sure we’re not missing anything important.”   


She conceded, “All right, but don’t hesitate to send me out there, I’m ready.  I’ll take care of these insurgents.” She got into a boxing stance and punched the air a few times causing T’Challa to laugh, she was glad that she could make him laugh.   


There was a chuckling behind her and someone said, “Now that I would like to see.”   


She whirled to see Bucky leaning on the doorframe his eyes trained on her.  She had a funny feeling in her stomach as she saw the grin on his face. T’Challa chuckled as well, “So would I.”   


Mina huffed, “Why do I feel like the two of you are teasing me?”   


“We’re not, doll,” Bucky said.  Mina couldn’t believe he had just called her doll, but she liked the warm fuzzy feeling inside that had continued to grow since she had discovered him in the doorway.  “We’re just really excited to see you in action.”   


“Yes my Little Panther,” T’Challa patted her on the head giving her a new nickname.  “You’re so eager to fight, we just can’t wait to see you in action.”   


Mina frowned at the two of them, “I like Shuri a lot better, she doesn’t pick on me.”   


“No she’s just using you for your powers,” T’Challa chuckled.  “She needs to keep you on her good side.”   


“How about this?  I just not talk to either of you for the duration of my time here?”  She crossed her arms over her chest and looked between the two men.   


T’Challa and Bucky looked at one with matching grins, “Whatever you say Little Panther.”  T’Challa patted her on the shoulder and headed toward the exit. “The two of you will not be disturbed for the rest of the evening, tell him.”   


Bucky looked at Mina in confusion, the grin slipping from his face.  “Tell me what?”   


“It’s nothing serious,” she clarified quickly.  “It’s just the Okoye asked me if I wanted to train with the Dora Milaje if I had any free time and I agreed.  I’ve been meaning to tell you, but we’ve both been so busy the past few days that I haven’t had the chance.”   


She noticed some tension leave his shoulders, “All right, if you’re okay with this then I can’t complain.  It’s an honor to be invited to train with them.”   


Mina took a seat in one of the chairs and curled up into a little ball, she tried to stifle a yawn but failed.  She hadn’t realized how sleepy she was when she was talking with T’Challa. Bucky watched her as she grew sleepier and sleepier.  “It is, I’m really excited. Shuri even said she was making me a new suit, so I’m excited to see that.” Her eyes were closing now.   


“Doll?”  Bucky asked as her breathing changed.  But it was too late, she was already asleep.  Bucky walked over to her as quietly as he could and picked her up gently.  He carried her bridal style to her room. He tugged her shoes off and covered her up so she wouldn’t get cold.   


He stood there for a brief moment watching to make sure she didn’t stir, and when he was sure she wouldn’t wake up he left quietly.  Out in the hall he pressed himself against the wall and closed his eyes, he could still smell her floral perfume and that weird bookish scent.  He needed to call Steve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one has surpassed the word count of the first version and also has more chapters. I've almost finished working on everything so I'll definitely be updating this one more once I finish writing it.


	7. Chapter Six

Once Bucky had shut himself away in his room he pulled out his phone and dialed Steve’s number hoping his friend would be awake or not too busy to talk with him.  Steve answered the phone fairly quickly when he saw that it was Bucky calling him. “Is something wrong?” Steve was worried that something had happened. That Bucky or Mina had been injured or something worse.   


“We’re fine, no one is injured, missing, or dead.  We haven’t even dealt with the problem yet,” Bucky knew that Steve would assume the worst first.  “I just… I need help.”   


Steve was suddenly at attention, “I can be on a Quinjet and there in a few hours….”   


“No, not that kind of help.”  Bucky rubbed his eyes, “I need advice about what to do with Mina.”  It hit Steve that his friend was calling for relationship advice, and he fought the urge to start chuckling. “I tried to act cold toward her thinking that I could keep her at arm's length, but that didn’t work.  She managed to worm her way into my life and now she’s driving me crazy!  She's too beautiful, funny, smart, and the way she's fitting in here....”  He groaned, his emotions were all over the place trying to find a way to deal with Mina, and keep his own feelings in check.   


Steve shook his head and grinned at his friend’s dilemma, “So are you tired of fighting your feelings for Mina?  Or do you need me to come over there and knock some sense into you?”   


Bucky wished he could shoot his friend a death glare right now.  “I told you nothing could happen, I just need some advice on how to make these feelings go away.  How do I get her out of my head?”   


“Listen Buck, you either accept your feelings or you just wait until they die on their own.  Those are your only options. I am not helping you out of this.” Steve hoped that his friend would just give in and admit how he felt for Mina, but he knew how stubborn Bucky was and that it would be damn near impossible to get him to open up to her in that way.   


“Some friend you are,” Bucky muttered.   


“James Buchanan Barnes, you have been single for God only knows how long, give in.”   


“I’m hanging up now,” Bucky said into the phone.   


“You do that, but that’s not going to change the fact that I think this will be good for you.  T’Challa thinks so too.”   


“Do you and T’Challa just gossip on the phone like teenage girls when no one is around?”  Bucky asked feeling slightly amused and annoyed that the two of them were conspiring behind his back.   


“Sorry, but I can’t answer that.  It’s confidential.”   


“Just by you saying that confirms the two of you gossip like two teenagers.  Look I have to get up early and go on border patrol with Mina and some of the Dora Milaje.  I will fill you in later on the mission.” Bucky hit the end button before Steve could say anything else.   


He stood and began to pace back and forth in his room.  After about ten minutes he caught a reflection of himself in the mirror and paused.  He still had his long hair, the Winter Soldier hair. He dug through his drawers and found a pair of scissors.   


He stepped into his bathroom and began to snip away at his hair.

  
Shuri was at Mina’s door bright and early the next day.  Mina had sat up feeling utterly confused, she couldn’t remember coming back to her room last night after her talk with Bucky.  So how did she get from the room she had been in to here?    


Shuri had come in all energy and excitement, she was practically bouncing off the walls.  Mina deduced that copious amounts of coffee had been ingested. “I did it! I made you a new suit. I was up all night working on this so that it would be ready for today before you went on patrol.”   


“Shuri, how many coffees have you had today?”  Mina rubbed her eyes and slipped out of bed to take the suit from Shuri.   


“Uh I believe four, but that was only so I could stay awake to finish this.”  Shuri looked at the black leather suit with turquoise designs on it. “I can totally change it and upgrade it, I had several designs in mind, but this is the one I like the best, and I figured you would like it best as well.”   


Mina looked over the new suit, a smile breaking out over her face.  She liked it a lot, it was her first real suit as an Avenger. “Shuri, it’s perfect.” She looked at her new friend and grinned, “Wait here, I’ll go put it on.”     


Mina ducked into the bathroom and began putting the suit on.  It was separated into three parts. She had pants, a turquoise singlet shirt, and a jacket.  Everything fit like a glove and was super comfortable. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled, she liked this so much more than the one she had brought with her.   


She stepped out of the bathroom and Shuri clapped, “It looks wonderful.”  She held up a pair of boots, “These will help absorb sound, so you can sneak more easily.”   


Mina slipped them on, “Shuri, these are wonderful.  Thank you so much for doing this for me.”   


Shuri waved her off, “It was no problem.  Now go out there and kick some ass today.”   


Mina laughed and they stepped out of the hall, right as Bucky was coming out of his room.  Mina hadn’t realized they were neighbors. He froze when he saw what she was wearing and how it clung to her every curve.  God help him, he was screwed.   
Mina noticed Bucky at the same time and froze as well.  He had cut his hair. It looked like it had been in one of the videos at the Smithsonian.  “Morning Bucky,” her voice was a little shaky. “How’d you sleep?” She noted the dark circles under his eyes and thought that he must not have slept very well.   


Shuri excused herself so that she could go get something to eat and then crash in her room after her all nighter.  Bucky ran his fingers through his hair, finding the sensation weird now that it wasn’t as long as it had been. “I slept… not well if I’m being honest,” there was no point in lying he knew she could see the dark circles under his eyes. “And you?”   


“Fine, but I have no idea how I got to my room.”  She glanced back at her door, then back at Bucky. She still couldn’t get over the loss of hair, she wasn’t sure which way she liked it best.  “Do you know?”   


“You walked, but you were so tired that I figured you wouldn’t remember getting back here.  I knew you must have been tired after the day you’d had so I suggested you get some rest before today,” there was no way he was telling her the truth.  He didn’t want her to think he was some kind of creep or that he had stood there and watched her as she was fast asleep.   


“Cool, well at least I made it back without face planting the floor,” she grinned at him and he returned it with one of his own.  “Where are we meeting T’Challa and the others?” She asked as they started down the hall. There was tension hanging in the air around them.   


Bucky was trying not to focus on how her hips swayed when she walked, or how her long black hair was pulled back into a ponytail and how he wished he could just take it down and run his-- No.  He shook his head and focused on what she had asked. “We are meeting him on the landing pad where we arrived at. We’ll take one of their jets to our destination and go from there.”   


When they arrived Okoye with the Dora Milaje and T’Challa were waiting for them to arrive.  T’Challa looked Mina up and down and said, “Shuri?”   


She nodded, “Gave it to me this morning.  You might want to check on her, she was hopped up on caffeine.”   


“I will, I’m sure she’ll be fine, but sometimes she just needs someone to make sure she gets some rest.”  T’Challa turned to Bucky. “I’m sorry I can’t join you today, but duty calls.”   


Bucky nodded, “I understand.  We’ll be fine.”   


Mina walked over to Okoye and the Dora Milaje while Bucky and T’Challa went over a few places on the map.  “Good morning,” she said to all of them.   


“Good morning Mina,” Okoye said.  “I’d like you to meet the Dora Milaje.  They are all excited to meet you and see your powers in action.”   


She waved and said, “I’m excited to train with all of you.  It really is an honor. I’ve heard how Steve speaks about your fighting abilities.  It’s nice knowing there’s a badass group of women running around protecting people from the bad things of the world.”  They all chuckled.   


Bucky joined them, T’Challa heading back inside to take care of the day’s business.  “Are we ready to go?”   


Okoye nodded, “Yes, I believe so.”  They boarded the jet and Okoye took control with Bucky as a co-pilot.   


“Sergeant Barnes looks handsome with the shorter hair,” one of the girls whispered and a few of them nodded in agreement.   


Mina turned her attention to the conversation, “It was quite a shock seeing him with the shorter hair this morning when I walked out of my room.”   


“He’s such a gentleman,” Ayo said.  “So polite, unlike others I’ve had the pleasure of coming in contact with.”   


“He is great,” Mina said a bit dreamily, she cast a longing glance in his direction.   


The girls all shared a look with one another.  “Do we detect feelings?” Nareema asked with a mischievous grin.   


“I admire Bucky,” Mina said quickly as she turned back to the group of women.  “That’s all.”   


The others didn’t seem to believe her, and no matter how many times she tried to convince people that she didn’t like Bucky in that way they never seemed to believe her, although she was starting to have a hard time convincing herself that she didn’t have feelings for him either.   


Okoye land the ship and they disembarked.  The jungle around them was alive with the sounds of the native animals, but there were no sounds of human life besides what they were making.  They split into groups. Okoye, Ayo, Bucky, and Mina were all in a group together. Mina was glad that she had been paired with Bucky. She didn’t know how she would do on her own with strangers.  New people tended to make her nervous.   


They moved through the trees and Okoye turned to Mina, “Can you fly?”   


Mina shook her head, “I’ve been working on it, but I’m unfortunately no good at it.”  She remembered one time when she had managed to get off the ground and then accidentally crashed into Steve who had been watching from the sidelines.   
Bucky cocked his head to the side and raised an eyebrow, “Earth to Mina.”   


She shook her head, “Sorry, I was just remembering the last time I tried flying.  Poor Steve was the cushion that broke my fall.” Bucky tried not to imagine Mina laying on top of Steve, but he couldn’t help the image that was conjured when she mentioned how her first attempt at flying had gone.   


They stuck to the ground, watching for signs of a camp, footprints, or anything out of the ordinary.  “How did you all realize that someone was trying to break in to steal the vibranium?”   


Okoye dropped to a crouch to look at something as she responded, “When T’Challa opened the borders we had a flood of people coming in.  There was a group of men that seemed off. Then someone tried to break into Shuri’s lab. We think it was a test run, they were never caught.  Now there’s been tampering along the borders. They figure this far from the major cities and areas where we live that we won’t pay much attention to the shield, but we do.  They haven’t managed to slip in as far as we know, but that’s why we do these border checks just in case.”   


Bucky went to say something else, but Mina threw out her hand and stopped him.  She brought a finger to her lips and pointed at something in the distance. When Bucky looked in that direction he could make out the remnants of a camp.  Mina motioned for them to wait there, and then she suddenly turned invisible right before Bucky’s eyes.   


Ayo and Okoye were just as shocked as he was.  “Well she could have told us she could do that,” Okoye muttered.   


A moment later Mina returned, “They’ve been gone for several hours now.  Camp is still fresh, but all the gear and things are gone.”   


They made their way over to see if they could find anything important.  “How many do you think were here?” Bucky asked.   


“Three,” Okoye said.  “They have different shoe sizes, and shoes on.  Enough for a sneak attack that wouldn’t draw too much attention.  They could get in and out without detection.”   


Mina looked around trying to find which way they went.  “Which way is Shuri’s lab?”   


Ayo stepped up next to her and pointed northward.  “There, in that direction.”   


“We should call it in,” Mina said.  “Warn T’Challa and anyone at that lab that there could be an attack.  That’s a few hours walk by foot, we could ambush them there.”   


Ayo went to call T’Challa and tell him, while Okoye told the others they had split off from earlier.  They made their way back to the jet and hurried to Shuri’s lab. T’Challa was there, “Do we have a plan?”  T’Challa asked.   


“Yes,” Mina started.  “I’ll wait out here for them, take them by surprise, and signal for the rest of you waiting in the shadows.  Once we have them we can take them to where ever you guys question prisoners and find out where the others are hiding.”   


“And why should we leave you out here by your lonesome?”  T’Challa didn’t like leaving one person out here by themselves when there were three men coming to steal the vibranium.   


Mina grinned at him, “Because they’ll never see me coming.”


	8. Chapter Seven

Mina watched for the men, her whole body blending into her surroundings.  She had taken a seat on the edge of the landing pad, her eyes scanning the surrounding area.  The others hadn’t quite liked the idea of leaving her out there by herself, but she reassured them repeatedly that she would be fine.  She could stay invisible for as long as she needed to and no one would see her. 

She was the perfect person for a sneak attack on the three men.  

Bucky and the others were hidden in the entranceway of the lab waiting for her signal.  Bucky couldn’t see her which worried him, but he knew that she was just blending in. He still didn’t like the idea of her being out there all alone. 

T’Challa tapped him on the arm, “Breathe Bucky.” Ayo and the others shared a looked, so Bucky was smitten too….   


“I am breathing,” Bucky said back, not turning away from where he had seen Mina disappear from.  He didn’t want to take his eyes off the spot he had last seen her in. She could still be there, and it made him feel better knowing that he could possibly be watching her back for her.   


Mina was still scanning the horizon, she couldn’t see them yet, but she heard the telltale signs of someone coming through the grass.  It was a soft rustle, and she knew it wasn’t the wind. She stood, getting ready to strike the moment they were on the landing pad.   


The three men popped over a hill and she saw they were of varying heights and ethnicities.  “Remember, Shinsky needs as much as we can get our hands on, and we need to do this stealthily, this is a test run.  He needs more if he wants to build this weapon of his,” the taller of the three said.

Mina narrowed her eyes, wondering who this Shinsky person was.  He had to be the leader if he was the one that sent him here, but why did he need the vibranium? 

She crept up behind them and kicked out the first guy’s legs. He tumbled to the ground with a groan, the other two whirled around and pointed their guns at their friend waiting to see the famous Black Panther standing there waiting to attack them, but there was no one there.   


“Jeffrey?  What the hell man?  Did you trip?” The shorter one asked.   


The one Mina had kicked over, Jeffrey, climbed to his feet looking around trying to find the source that had kicked him over.  “Someone just kicked me!”   


The taller one rolled his eyes, “Come on now, stop messing with us, now is not the time to be playing tricks.  We need to get in and out before anyone realizes that we’re here.”   


“It’s not a trick Stellan!”  Jeffrey whisper yelled. “Something really tripped me.”   


Mina crept over to the man she didn’t know the name for and kicked his feet out from under him.  “What that hell?!” He cursed as he sprang back up, his gun at the ready. It was all she could do to keep from giggling, this was more fun than she thought it would be.   


Next she tossed the tallest one up against a wall with her powers, sending him crumbling to the ground.  She became visible and grinned at the two she tripped, their faces paled as their assailant was revealed. “Now!” She shouted as her powers flared up and she took the weapons away from the men.   


The Dora Milaje appeared, their spears pointed right at the men who had their arms held up in surrender.  Bucky was dragging the one Mina had tossed against a wall over to where the other two were now being cuffed. 

T’Challa smiled at Mina, “Now I see why they spoke so highly of you.  Good work Mina.”   


Okoye and Ayo finished putting cuffs on the men and loaded them onto one of the jets to take them to the holding cells far away from the labs.  Bucky walked over to Mina, “Good job.” He hoped she couldn’t see how worried about her he had been.  

She handed the men's weapons over the Ayo and shrugged, “All in a day’s work.”  She looked up at T’Challa, “Are you going to question them as soon as we get back or let them stew for a few days?”   


“I think I’ll let them stew for a few days.  Make them paranoid. I think you should accompany me when I go to question them, I’m pretty sure they’re going to be terrified of you Little Panther.”  He had seen the looks on their faces, how they had paled when Mina had appeared right before their eyes. Yes, she would be good at interrogating them.   


Mina smirked at T’Challa, “Say the word and I’m there.”   


They boarded a different jet from the men and flew back to the palace.  “Mina, would you mind making us some dinner tonight? I am quite curious about your father’s Italian dishes,” T’Challa requested.   


“Sure,” she said.  “I’d love too.” He thanked her and headed off to fill out reports of what had happened that afternoon.  Mina headed to her room first to change into more comfortable clothes and to grab her tablet before heading to the kitchen.

When she got there she started a Skype session with Pietro.  “Hello Little Mina,” he smiled brightly at her and she knew instantly that he was in his room at the compound.  “How is Wakanda treating you?”

Mina started to gather the supplies for dinner setting in in front of her tablet.  “It’s wonderful here Piet. I love it, T’Challa and Shuri and everyone have been so nice and welcoming.  Peter and Shuri would get along great, they’re alike in some ways, and I think Peter would like having someone his own age to talk to about all this superhero stuff.  The food is also wonderful, Bucky to some street vendors the other night and we had dinner there. The streets are crowded but clean. It’s a perfect paradise here. I swear I’ll never want to leave.”  She shook her head as a smile brightened her face. “And the library!”

Pietro chuckled, “It rivals that of the Avengers’ library?”

“Yes, it’s massive and there are so many books in other languages.  I was reading a few in Italian a few days ago.”

“I’m glad you’re enjoying your time in Wakanda Little Mina.  It’s not the same without you here though. We all miss you.”

“I miss you guys too,” she said earnestly.  She hadn’t felt homesick yet, but standing in the kitchen talking to Pietro did make her miss home and her friends.

Pietro got a cheeky grin on his face, “And how is Sergeant Barnes?  Any fluttery feelings in your tummy?”   


She flipped him off, “Shut up.”   


Pietro grinned at her, “Don’t fight it, my friend.  You two would look cute together, we all think so.” She was mortified that the others had discussed what she and Bucky would be like as a couple.   


“Pietro!”  Mina heard Wanda shouting for her brother.  “Where did you run off too?”   


“Ah duty calls,” he said.  “Try to call us all again soon, okay?”   


“I promise,” she said before hitting the end button and going back to her task.   


A few minutes later Bucky appeared in the doorway.  For a brief moment Mina panicked, hoping he hadn’t heard the tail-end of her conversation with Pietro.  “Need any help?”   


Mina looked up from the dough and nodded, “Sure, can you come here and roll out the dough.”  She handed a rolling pin over to Bucky and she walked over to where she had a sauce boiling. She found a spoon and tasted it, humming at how good it tasted.  She grabbed another spoon and scooped some onto it and headed back over to Bucky. “Taste this and tell me your honest opinion.”   


He took the spoon from her and tried the sauce.  His eyes widened momentarily and he swallowed, “This is delicious, doll.  Did you make this from scratch?”   


Mina tried to ignore the way her heart skipped a beat when he called her “doll”.  It didn’t mean anything, she told herself. He probably called a lot of girls doll.  “I did,” she told him as she took the spoon back from him so he could finish rolling out the dough.  “My dad didn’t believe in store bought sauce. We would make sauce from scratch every day.”   


She put the lid back on the sauce and checked on the water for the pasta.  “I was a hopeless cook,” he said. “I either burned food or it turned out bland.”   


She began shredding cheese into a bowl.  “It’s important you know how to cook.” She looked over and told him to stop rolling out the dough.  She finished the cheese and scooped some of the sauce into a separate bowl and handed it to Bucky, “Spread this on the dough.”  She went back to the cheese. “When we get back to the compound I will teach you how to cook properly. We can’t have you going hungry, or ordering takeout all the time like the others do.”   


The two of them worked in silence for a bit, Mina giving him instructions every once in a while.  Once they had everything made and in the ovens they slumped against the counter. “Is cooking always this draining?”  He asked.   


“Yes,” she told him.  “But the end result is so worth it.”  She grinned at him. “We have about forty-five minutes before it’s ready.  You can go if you want.”   


“No, I’ll stay here with you,” he told her.  He took a seat on one of the bar stools and she joined him.  “You did really well today.”   


“Thanks, to be honest, I was a little nervous, this being my first mission and all.  I just really want to make a good impression. Steve and Wanda sang my praises and I don’t want to let them down,” she picked at a place on the counter, her eyes not meeting Bucky’s.   


“You have nothing to worry about,” he assured her.  “You’re a natural at this.”   


“Thank you, Bucky,” she finally looked up at him and gave him a small, shy smile.     


The two of them just stared at one another for the longest time, each of them working through things in their minds.  Mina realizing that Pietro was right and that she did have feelings for Bucky, feelings that were not just admiration.  She had a crush on  Bucky. Her heart began to beat a little faster, and she hoped he couldn’t hear it.   


Bucky, on the other hand, was thinking that he was in too deep and he had to back away a little from her.  If not he wouldn’t be able to hide his feelings from her.   


The timer on the oven went off and they both jumped.  Mina quickly rushed over and pulled the food out of the ovens, setting them on trays and taking them to the dining room where T’Challa, Shuri, Queen Ramonda, Okoye, and Nakia, who had just gotten back from a mission, were all waiting patiently for her to bring the food in.   


They all talked about their lives throughout dinner and got to know one another better.  Shuri kept talking about her new inventions and how she was still working on the new armor for the Dora Milaje.  Okoye asked Mina when she wanted to come train with them, and she said soon.   


Bucky stayed silent mostly.  He was just happy that nobody was really paying attention to him or asking him many questions.   


Most of the people at the table knew him though, they were all too busy trying to learn more about Mina and what she was like.  Bucky silently got up and excused himself from the table thinking no one would notice if he was gone.   


But two people did.  T’Challa and Mina.   


Mina’s eyes followed Bucky out of the room as Shuri told a story about T’Challa.  Once he had disappeared out the door she looked over at T’Challa and their eyes met.  T’Challa shrugged his shoulders and turned back to Shuri to yell at her for embarrassing him in front of their guest.   


Mina tried to engage in the conversation, but she was too focused on Bucky.   


Okoye nudged Mina with her elbow.  “Go after him,” she whispered once she realized that a member of their dinner party had disappeared, and that Mina looked like she wanted to go bolting from the room after him.   


Mina looked at the woman to her left for a brief moment before standing up and excusing herself for the night.  She headed down the halls, her heart hammering in her chest. She shouldn’t bother him, he was probably asleep. She just wanted to make sure he was okay.   


She paused in front of his door, her hand raised to knock, his name on the tip of her tongue.  But in the end she chickened out. She dropped her hand with a soft sigh and headed to her room.  She had no idea what she would even say to him. She would see him in the morning and make sure he was okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having fun rewriting this. It's fun to revist these scenes and see how I can make them better and if there's anything I can add to them that I didn't the first time around. Hope y'all are enjoying it as well!


	9. Chapter Eight

Bucky wasn’t even in his room when Mina went to knock.  He was holed away in the library going through the books trying to find something to read.  A world to escape into where he could forget about the bewitching siren somewhere else in the palace. 

He had chosen the library hoping that he would go undisturbed here.  He knew of a secret little nook in the far back where he would be sheltered from sight if anyone came in.  Well if Mina came in that was.  

The doors opened and T’Challa stepped into the room.  He had followed the dot on the map signaling where Bucky was.  He rounded the corner to where Bucky’s hideout was located and found the man sitting there with a book in hand, his face scrunched up in concentration. He arched an eyebrow at the other man, not saying a word.  

Bucky feeling the eyes of another persona looked up and glared at the King of Wakanda, “What are you doing in here?  And how did you even--” He stopped that thought when he remembered the holographic maps and how they had everyone’s location on them.  “Nevermind,” he sighed.   


“And why did you leave dinner?”  T’Challa took a seat across from Bucky.   


Bucky shrugged, “I just wasn’t hungry, and you all were busy with Mina that I figured no one would notice if I was missing.”   


“I noticed, and so did she,” T’Challa’s tone was soft as he told Bucky this.   


“I’ll apologize to her tomorrow and tell her I was tired,” Bucky informed him.   


T’Challa leaned forward, resting his elbows on his legs, “May I ask you why you’re so adamant about not giving Mina a chance?”   


“T’Challa,” Bucky started with an exasperated sigh.   


T’Challa held up a hand, “No excuses, and I promise that this won’t get back to Steve.  And I won’t pester you about her, I just want to know why you’re fighting this so much when you’re clearly miserable and would probably be happier if you just told her the truth.”   


“I don’t deserve her,” Bucky said after a moment of silence.  “I’m not the James Barnes I was back when she first read about me, the man she looks up too.  I did horrible things when I was the Winter Soldier, things I’m still trying to come to terms with, still trying to right in a way.  Then there’s always the fear that I could revert back to what HYDRA made me be.”   


“But Shuri fixed that,” T’Challa said quietly.   


Bucky nodded, “She did, but there’s still that fear.  And another thing is the age difference.”   


T’Challa laughed, “Oh Bucky, I don’t think anyone cares how old you are, you age differently.  Just let that go.”   


Bucky didn’t comment on what T’Challa had said.  Despite what the others were telling him the age difference still bothered him whether he looked like a thirty year old man or not.  “But those are the reasons I don’t want to pursue this.”   


T’Challa stood, “I think you need let her decide what she wants, what she can handle.  But that’s just my opinion. Thank you for confiding in me Bucky, and I promise none of this will get back to Steve and that this will be the last time I ask you about her and your feelings.”   


T’Challa left shortly after that leaving Bucky alone once again.

 

Mina tossed and turned in her bed that night.  She couldn’t find a comfortable position and she also couldn’t get to sleep.  Sighing she sat up and headed to the kitchen to fix herself a cup of tea and then head to the library to find something to read.

Cup of tea in hand she looked down at the map.  Her groggy state of mind couldn’t quite remember the way to the library, and she was surprised to see that Bucky was in the library as well.

She followed his dot and discovered a secret cove in the back of the library.  Bucky was lounging on the couch there, a book lying on his chest. He was fast asleep, a soft snore emanating from him.

She took a step forward and gently nudged him, “Bucky?”  He didn’t stir. “Bucky,” she said a bit louder this time.

He jerked awake his eyes darting around the room looking for signs of danger.  Then he noticed Mina standing above him. Her shirt slightly askew, and her shorts were unbearably short.  For a moment he thought he was having another dream about her. “What time is it?” 

His hoarse voice had her cheeks flaring red, “It’s a little after one in the morning.”

He rubbed his face with his hands, “I must have fallen asleep in here then.”  He swung his legs over the side and looked down at the ground trying not to focus on her legs, or how tight her tank top was.  He was a gentleman for God’s sakes, he was not going to ogle her.

Mina was having the same problem.  She was trying to not focus on the way the material of his shirt strained against his bicep, or how tight his shirt was.  She hadn’t noticed it earlier when they were cooking together, too engrossed in her work to pay attention to how good he looked in the black t-shirt he was wearing.

She shook her head, now was not the time for that train of thought.

She took a seat across from him and sat her tea down on the table in front of her.  “You should go back to your room if you’re tired,” she suggested quietly. He did still look tired, there were dark circles under his eyes and his shoulders were slumped.

He looked up at her finally, “I’m fine.”

She gave him a concerned look, “You’re not fine.”  She stood and held out her hands to him. “Come on, let’s get you back to bed.”

He hesitated, but took her hands and let her help him up.  He groaned as his stiff muscles stretched and the two of them headed off down the hall toward their own rooms.  “Why can’t you sleep?”

They were almost to Bucky’s room and Mina paused briefly.  “I-I don’t know if we’re being honest.” But she knew it was because of him.  Him disappearing at dinner and her latest discovery that she had feelings for him were keeping her up.

Bucky pushed his door opened and the two of them stepped inside.  Mina was surprised to find it clean, there were no clothes strewn across the floor, no trash littering the tables tops.  And she was pleasantly surprised to find that it smelled like him.

She paused a few steps into the room and watched as Bucky trudged over to the bed and collapsed on top of it.  He let out a little relieved sigh and closed his eyes. “You going back to bed now?”

“No, I’m going back to the library to read.  I’m still not tired.” She turned to leave and paused in the doorway.  “Get some rest Bucky, I’ll see you in the morning.”

“G’night doll,” he murmured before sleep overtook him.

 

Mina woke the next morning and discovered that she had fallen asleep in the library much like Bucky had.  She groaned as she sat up and ran a hand through her hair, wincing as she hit some tangles.

The doors to the library opened and Shuri stepped inside, “There you are!”  She plopped down on the couch beside her and continued talking, “I went to your room this morning and you weren’t there.  Did you fall asleep in here?” She asked when she realized that Mina was still in her PJs.

Mina nodded her head, “Yeah, I couldn’t sleep so I came in here to read.  I must have passed out. Did you need something?”

“I was coming to get you for breakfast.  I thought we could spend the day together,” there was a hopeful look on Shuri’s face.  She was hoping Mina didn’t have any plans for that day.

“I’d love too,” Mina responded.  “Let me just go get changed and we can go into the city together.”  She stood up, stretching her arms above her head and heading back to her room.  As she neared her room the door to Bucky’s opened and the two of them paused. Bucky noted Mina was still wearing her PJs from last night.  “Morning Bucky, did you sleep all right?”

“I did doll, did you finally manage to get some sleep?”  She still looked a little tired.

“I fell asleep in the library,” she confessed.  “Woke up with a book on my chest.”

He remembered the night they flew there and how she had fallen asleep with a book on her chest.  He shoved the image aside. “Are you going back to bed or…?” He trailed off not quite sure what to say to her.

“No, Shuri and I are going to get some breakfast and then head out into the city together.  What’re you going to do today?”

“I’m going to go check on the prisoners and see how they’re holding up.  T’Challa will probably want to question them in a few days.” They were hoping some time in the cells would have some effect on them and make them open up more when it came time for questioning.

“Well good luck,” she said with a smile as she slowly made her way back over to her room.  

“Have fun today,” he called after her.

She shot him a smile before disappearing into her room.

 

Shuri and Mina were walking the city streets arm in arm.  It was just as crowded as it had been when she had Bucky had come out to get something to eat.  She loved how the people interacted with one another. She enjoyed watching them and getting a feel for how the city worked.

It was so different from places like New York City and D.C. with their big malls that were crowded with tourists and locals alike.  

“So how long have you had a crush on Barnes?”  Shuri asked as they approached a store selling beads and jewelry.

Mina fiddled with a pendant in the shape of a panther head.  She had grown fond of the nickname T’Challa had given her and considered getting the necklace as a little reminder of her newest nickname.  “I guess a while, but I just only now realized it.” She wasn’t going to lie to Shuri.

“I think he likes you too.”  Shuri was a hundred percent certain that Bucky had feelings for Mina, but it was more fun to let the two of them figure it out on their own. Shuri knew that her brother was currently trying to get Bucky to confess to Mina, but that the other man was being stubborn about it.

Mina turned to Shuri, “He doesn’t.”  There was no way that Bucky liked her.  He would barely talk to her when they first met, and even now he seemed a little closed off from her.

“Give it time,” Shuri assured her.  “I bet if you told him it would speed the process along.”

Mina was horrified at the thought of actually confessing her feelings to Bucky.  “I can’t do that! He could reject me and then we’re stuck here together on a mission and what about in the future?  I don’t want to make things awkward between the two of us.”

“Come on, the two of you are adults!  I’m sure you can handle it, and you never know it could work in your favor.”  Shuri tossed a beaded bracelet at her. “Give this to him. It signifies friendship and a bond between two people.”

Mina studied the yellow, red, and white beaded bracelet.  She then grabbed the necklace and headed up to the counter to pay for her items.  The two of them left the shop shortly after that and continued to weave their way through the city together.

Later that evening after dinner Mina walked over to Bucky and held out the bracelet to him.  “Shuri told me that these signify friendship,” she could feel her cheeks heating and she couldn’t meet his intense gaze.  “I just, uh, thought that since we’re, you know, friends and all that I would get it for you.” She hated the way she stuttered over her words.

He reached out and slowly took the bracelet from her, “Thank you.”  Her hand tingled where his fingers had brushed her palm.

She finally looked up at him and noticed that there was a soft smile on his face.  He looked down at the bracelet and then back at her. “Doll, could you clasp it for me?”

She nodded and looked down, taking the bracelet from him and gently clasping it around his wrist.  He fought the urge to shiver as her fingers gently brushed his skin. “There you go,” she whispered.

“Thanks,” he responded just as softly.

She simply nodded and said, “I should go.  I’m kinda tired after today and I think Shuri wants me at the lab tomorrow.  I’ll talk to you later.” She said quick goodnight and headed to her room as fast as she could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll post a new chapter of Siren's Lullaby tonight, I just gotta finish it.


	10. Chapter Nine

T’Challa found Mina having breakfast in the kitchen a few days later and informed her that he was going to question the three men.  Ayo had informed him the first man that Mina had kicked over was growing a little paranoid and looked like he could break at any second.  “I do believe it’s time we talk to our guests,” he told her. “I don’t want him to have a nervous breakdown, and then we not be able to get any kind of information out of him.”   


“Agreed,” she said as she set her cereal bowl in the dishwasher.  “Let me go change and I’ll meet you at the landing pad.” She headed out of the kitchen and down the hall to her room. She eyed Bucky’s door as she passed it, she hadn’t seen him except in passing for the past few days.  The last time they had had a full conversation with one another was when she had given him the bracelet.   


About the time she passed the door to his room it opened revealing Bucky in jeans and a tight fitting, v-neck t-shirt.  The two of them paused, “Morning.”   


She frowned, she thought they had gotten past the one word greetings.  “Morning,” she replied as curtly as he had. “I’m going with T’Challa to question one the men today.  Do you want to join us?”   


“No, I’m joining Okoye on a mission, I won’t be back until later tonight,” he replied.   


She was a little disappointed.  “Oh, all right. Well the next time I see you I’ll let you know what we found out.”   


“Fine,” with that he left.   


Mina didn’t try to think much of it, she just entered her room and dressed in semi-casual clothes.  She wasn’t going to put her suit on for this, she wanted to be as comfortable as possible, and tight leather was not going to work for this.  She put on a pair of dress pants, a button up shirt, and a vest. 

She slipped on a pair of Converse and was out the door to meet T’Challa.  They boarded a jet and flew to where the cells were. “Who gets the honor of going in first?”  She asked T’Challa as they made their way down the semi-dark halls toward one of the interrogation rooms were the man, Jeffrey, had been placed.   


“I think you should go in first Little Panther,” he said with a wicked grin.  “I do believe he’s more afraid of you and your magic than he is of me and what I can do to him.”

He did have a point, she had seen the look of horror on his face as she appeared before their eyes.  “All right, let’s hope this works.” 

Mina shoved the door open, the man jumping in his seat when he saw who it was.  “Please don’t hurt me,” he stuttered.   


She took a seat on the table in front of his chair.  “I’m not going to hurt you,” she said in a sickly sweet voice.  “I just want to talk with you.”   


“I’m not going to tell you anything,” he said, but his shaky tone suggested otherwise.   


Mina smiled at him, “You wanna take a bet on that or…?”  She trailed off. The man was shaking even worse now. “Listen, Jeffrey right?”  He nodded. “We just want to know why you want vibranium so badly. I heard you talking about your boss Shinsky the other day before I tripped you up.  I’m sorry about that, must have been really scary for you,” one of her other powers was calming people down and getting them to relax around her. She was trying to do that now, but the man was too wound up and it wasn’t working as well as it usually did.  “Why don’t you tell me about him?”   


“I don’t know anything,” the man repeated.   


She chuckled, “Come on now, we both know you know something.  Stop playing stupid, it doesn’t suit you.”   


The man was beginning to relax now, she could see it in the way his shoulders were relaxing and how his body slumped in the seat.  “Shinsky is only one of my bosses, there are three other guys that work with him. They’re all scientists, really bright guys. They’re trying to create some kind of weapon,” Jeffrey seemed to have gone into a dreamlike state, his eyes were glazed over and he had a goofy grin on his face.  “I don’t know what the weapons for, but it’s gonna be big.”   


Mina’s eyes looked up at the two-way mirror, but then back at Jeffrey, “When are they planning a large-scale attack?”   


“Don’t know, they wanted to see how we did and how security was when we stole some of the vibranium.”   


She stood up and headed for the door.  Once she was in the hallway she looked at T’Challa, “Do you think they’d try something if they know we have their men?”   


He rubbed his chin, “It’s a possibility, but I can’t say for certain.  I can double the security at the lab, Shuri won’t like it, but she can manage.”   


“What are we going to do with the three of them?”  She asked as she looked back at Jeffrey.   


“What were you doing in there?  Can you alter their memories? Make them forget they were ever held captive?  We could give them vibranium plant when the next best time would be for a raid and be prepared that way.”   


Mina shook her head regretfully, “I can’t alter memories, I can only calm people down and make them a little more agreeable.  Actually reprogramming their memories is not in my wheelhouse.”   


“Shame, that would have been perfect,” T’Challa said.   


“Sorry,” she said apologetically.  “I don’t dabble in that kind of magic.”   


“It’s quite all right.  We’ll question him some more later, I’d like to know where these men are hiding….  I don’t like that they’re trying to build a weapon out of vibranium.”   


“I don’t either.  And trying to figure out what kind of weapon it would be, is it going to be a gun?  A bomb of some type? What have they cooked up in that lab or where ever they are?”   


“I’ll have Okoye question him and the others later, if she can’t get it out of them then I’ll bring you back here to see what else you can get out of them.”  They headed for the surface. “I’m going to go check on Shuri and make  sure she isn’t overworking at her lab. I’ll drop you off at the palace, feel free to spend the rest of the day however you wish.”   


T’Challa took her back to the palace and she headed for her room to change into some work out clothes so she could take advantage of the gym the palace had to offer.  She plugged in her earphones and turned on her workout playlist blasting it as loud as she could stand it.   


The gym was rather large with state of the art exercise machinery.  She got on the treadmill and started to run, the treadmills overlooked the Wakandan jungles and mountainscapes.  The sun was going down and she could see lights coming on from a few of the homes scattered throughout the trees.   


She never wanted to leave this place.  She could get used to living like this, and she could see why the Wakandans had been so protective about who they let see the real them.  They wanted to protect this tranquil place from outsiders that would want to change it and profit off the land.   


She hopped off the treadmill and walked over to where there were several punching bags and she began to work through her frustrations with Bucky and just life in general.  It felt good to punch something, and she realized that she missed sparing with Steve. He had always gone easy on her, but the physical exertion had been great. She also missed sparring with Natasha.     


Natasha had offered to teach Mina a few things a month after arriving at the compound.  Mina was a little afraid of Natasha at first, the woman was intimidating, but she soon learned that Natasha was a good person, just a little closed off from others.  Then in came Clint and he taught her how to aim and never miss her target.   


Mina bent over taking in lungfuls of air and smiling as she remembered her first few weeks and her first month at the compound.  It had been such a whirlwind and she remembered talking to her parents about it.   


_ “Mamma, Papà," she had said with some trepidation.  “I was approached by the Avengers.” They both shared a look.  They had figured sooner or later that their daughter would be approached by someone with her abilities.  “And I think I’m going to join them.” _   
_ Her parents were quiet for a few minutes, letting the news sink in.  Her dad had taken her hands and said, “ _ Figlia _ , no matter what you decide to do I will always support you.  If you wish to join the Avengers then I trust you.  _

_ You have been granted incredible gifts, and if you want to use them to protect others then nothing would make me prouder.” _   


There had been tears and she had hugged her parents tightly, but she knew that joining was something that she had to do.  She couldn’t keep working for her parents in their little restaurant, taking orders and living off tips. She needed to be out there in the world fighting to keep people safe from any and all threats that may come their way.   


Tony made sure her parents were well taken care of and that they wouldn’t catch any backlash if someone were to come after her.  That was one of the reasons that made her choice of joining easier. She wanted to make sure her parents were protected and taken care of if something happened to her.   


The sun had completely gone down and the lights had come on throughout the palace.  Mina glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that it was sometime past eight and decided to head to the kitchen to grab a little snack before heading back to her room and settling in for the night and turning on a movie.   


The kitchen was not empty when she arrived.  Bucky stood at the fridge with his back to her.  She pulled her earphones out and said, “Hey.”   


Bucky didn’t jump, he just turned around slowly, “Hey, when did you get back?”   


“A little bit ago, I’ve been in the gym,” she told him as she joined him by the fridge.  “I was able to get a little out of one of them. He and the others work for some scientists, and they want the vibranium for a weapon they’re building.”   


“Where are they located?”  He asked as he popped the cap on his Coke.   


She shrugged as she grabbed a bottle of water and some fruit.  “Don’t know. I walked out before I could ask him. I didn’t want to push him too hard, he was pretty traumatized and if I kept using my abilities on him he could have passed out.  I don’t even know if they would even know, they just seem like middlemen. Why would they know where the actual hideout is? Okoye is going to question them again, and if she can’t get anything else out of  them, T’Challa said he’d bring me back.”   


“How did you get so much out of him?”  Bucky didn’t know about Mina’s other abilities.   


She blushed a little, she hated explaining this part of her power to people.  “I can calm people down and get them to open up. Think of it like a siren song.  I make them trust me in a way.”   


Bucky blinked, “That seems useful.”   


She shrugged, “It helps when there are drunk people around and they’re being rowdy or mean.  Their inhibitions are already lowered, and I can slip in easier. People that are scared or nervous or one edge are a little harder to do because just panicking too much.”   


“How many people know about this little talent of yours?”   


She did a tally, “Everyone at the compound, I’ve used it on Tony a few times when he was having a problem, he says it’s better than taking medication.  And now you and T’Challa. And trust me, I don’t use it unless I have too. I don’t like using it, but sometimes it’s a necessary evil like today.”   


He was silent for a moment and then said, “What else can you do?”   


“Not much else,” she told him.  “Just what you’ve seen so far, I’m still discovering what my limits and things are.  Wanda’s been helpful when it comes to discovering these buried powers, she learned a lot on her own and now she’s making sure I don’t go through this alone.”   


“I’m glad you have someone,” he said.  “Thank you for filling me in on how today went, and have a good rest of your evening.”   


He went to leave, but she called out, “I’m going to watch a movie in my room, do you want to join me?  I’ll let you pick what we watch.”   


Bucky shook his head, “No I have things that I need to do.  Enjoy your night Mina.” And with that he was gone.   


Mina grabbed some popcorn and junk food, courtesy of Shuri, and headed back to her room to shower before setting up for movie night.  When she got out Okoye, Shuri, and Ayo were all sitting in her room in front of her TV.   
“Uh hello?”   


Shuri grinned at her, “Barnes told us you were going to have a movie night and that you invited him, but he unfortunately couldn’t join you.  We were all free so we have come to join you.”   


Mina smiled, “Fun, so what are we feeling like tonight?  Romance? Comedy? Action?”   


They argued over movies for a bit before they all agreed on Knight and Day with a Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz.  It had a little bit of something for everyone, romance, comedy, and action. They laughed and had a good time passing the popcorn around. Shuri and Okoye would have commentary to add like how Shuri could build the battery and how it wouldn’t explode.  Okoye on how primitive the use of guns were. Mina and Ayo would shush them and complain that they were both talking through the good parts.   


When the movie was over Shuri was asleep and Okoye went to wake her up but Mina stopped her.  “She’s fine, just let her rest.” Okoye nodded and she and Ayo left Mina’s room as quietly as they would so they wouldn’t disturb Shuri.   


Mina found an extra blanket and covered Shuri with it.  “Night Shuri,” she whispered.   


“Night Mina,” Shuri said back sleepily making Mina smile.

Unbeknownst to them Bucky had been in his room reading when he heard the girls show up at Mina’s door.  He listened as they argued over what movie to watch, and then as they all laughed and had a good time watching the movie.

Bucky smiled and continued to listen to them chatter away and before long they were leaving.  He knew that she would have had more fun with them than she would have ever had with him, and he was glad she was making friends while she was here.

Soon after the others had left he set his book off to the side and tried to get some sleep as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't said this for a while but I wanted to let y'al know how much it means when I see you all liking my stories and subscribing to them. You've made writing this series an enjoyment and not stressful. So thank you for sticking around and reading my work ^-^


	11. Chapter Ten

Mina ran through the streets of Wakanda’s capital.  Her music blasting, her mind trying to focus on the task at hand.  She was trying to clear her mind of the dream she had had the night before of Bucky.  It had been unexpected and when she had woken up she had half expected to find him sprawled out beside her.   


She had grabbed her pillow and screamed into it, and then she had fumbled for her phone and called Natasha.  “I need advice.”   


The woman on the other end chuckled, “Oh my, and what has you feeling some type of way?  Would it happen to be Mr. Bucky Barnes?”   


“Yes,” she groaned.   


“What happened?”  Natasha plopped down in one of her chairs in her room, ready to hear whatever had happened between Mina and Bucky.   


“I had a dream about him,” Mina started.  “And before you go thinking it was a dirty dream, it wasn’t.  I just… we kissed and God did I want that to be real. I half expected him to be beside me when I woke up this morning, and when he wasn’t there I was so disappointed.”  She left out that they had almost done the deed in the dream, she just didn’t want Natasha to know that because she knew there would be endless teasing if she did.   


“And what did you want me to talk to you about?  It’s completely normal to have these types of dreams when you start having feelings for other people.  I’ve had plenty of them, just let them happen, and hopefully they’ll happen outside of your subconscious.”   


“I swear he’s so hot and cold.  One moment he’s barely saying more than three words to me, the next he’s helping me cook and calling me 'doll', and then he’s back to no more than three words.  He’s driving me crazy!”   


Natasha chuckled, “Maybe you should try talking to him, tell him how you feel.”   


“No!”  Mina shouted.  Why was everyone trying to get her to confess to Bucky?  “No, no, no. I can’t tell Bucky how I feel. Not while we’re here in Wakanda for God knows how long.  Not when we’ll be working together for the foreseeable future.”   


“Sure you can!”  Nat encouraged. “Just work up the courage and pray for the best.”   


“Thank you, Nat, that really helps,” Mina said sarcastically.   


Nat just laughed, “Suck it up buttercup, if you like a guy you have to own up to it, and nine times out of ten Bucky is never going to admit how he feels to you.  He’s quiet and reserved.”   


“I know, I’ve just never done anything like this before.  Guys always asked me out. It’s a little scary when it’s you who has to do the asking.”   


“You can do it, and hey you don’t have to do it right now.  You can take some time to plan everything out, maybe talk yourself down from where you’re at right now.  Just because these feelings have just now made themselves known doesn’t mean you have to act right away.”   


“I know,” Mina told her.  “I should go, I want to get a run in before anyone needs me for the day.”   


“All right, talk to you later and if you ever need any advice, I’m only a phone call away.”  They said a quick goodbye and Mina got ready for her run.   


And that’s where she was now, running through the streets of Wakanda trying to sort through everything.  Mina decided that she was going to take a few days and see how she felt then. She also wanted to see how Bucky was going to treat her.   
She was so distracted by her thoughts that she almost missed him jogging ahead of her.  If the sun hadn’t glinted off his metal arm she may never have noticed him. Pulling out her earphones she sped up trying to catch him.  “Morning Bucky, out for an early morning run?”   


Bucky looked down at her, and half groaned when he saw what she was wearing, a pair of shorts and a black, sports bra.  The woman was going to be the death of him. “Yeah, you too?”   


“Yeah, I had trouble sleeping last night.”  She felt a blush crawl up her neck as she replayed the dream in her head.  Maybe coming over to talk to him hadn’t been the best idea.   


Bucky was completely oblivious to her internal struggle to remain as calm and unflustered as possible because he was trying to focus on anything but her.  “I’m sorry to hear that,” he said.   


“Eh, it happens.”  They lapsed into silence.  Mina racking her brain for anything to say to him.     


“Do you wanna get something to eat?”  Bucky asked as he slowed to a walk. He didn’t need to, but he noticed Mina was struggling to keep up with him.   


She was grateful for the change in pace and nodded, “Yeah, I’d love to.”   


He led her to a little restaurant that served breakfast foods from all over the world.  Bucky already knew what he was going to over, but he watched Mina as her eyes skimmed the pages of the menu.  “Try the croissants,” he said.   


She looked up, “Is that what you’re getting?”   


He nodded, “One of the things.  I’m also getting the Belgian waffles.”     


She flipped through the menu and saw the waffles he was talking about.  They did look good, but she was going to go with the croissant like he had suggested and a plate of pancakes to go along with them.  A waitress came over and took their order before abruptly leaving to get their drinks and input their order.   


“How’ve your missions been going?”  She asked. He had been doing a lot of separate things with some of the Dora Milaje and others within the Wakandan borders.  It was one reason why they hadn’t spent much time together, or at least why she thought they hadn’t spent much time together.   


He shrugged, “They’ve been good, minor complications, but nothing I can’t handle.”  He took a sip of his water and asked, “And what about you? How have things been with T’Challa?”   


“Good, Okoye questioned the men the other day and they claimed they didn’t know anything so I’ll probably be heading to the prison soon to talk to them again.  You should come with me this time. We could do the whole good cop, bad cop routine. You’d be the bad cop obviously.” She grinned at him and he shook his head fighting off a smile himself.   


“And what would make me the bad cop?”     


She arched an eyebrow at him and tried to pull off one of those little smirks Natasha did sometimes.  “Well since my powers can calm people down I think it would be pretty obvious that I am the good cop.”     


The waitress brought their food over and they thanked her before continuing their discussion.  “Doll, I will have you know I could probably charm the socks off those three.”   


“Oh really?”  She challenged, there was a grin breaking out onto her face.  “All right, let’s make a little bet then. We each get fifteen minutes with one of the guys.  Whoever can get the most information out of the guy wins. Oh and I promise not to use my abilities.” She figured if Bucky couldn’t calm them down and make them more agreeable then she shouldn’t be able to either.   


Bucky had no doubt that even without her powers that she couldn’t charm the men.  All she had to do was bat her eyes at them and talk sweetly and they’d be putty in her hands just like he was starting to be.  “And what are we betting?” Bucky asked.   


“Movie night,” she said.  “Winner picks the movie.”   


“You’re on,” Bucky said as she stretched out his hand for her to shake.  With the deal done they ate in companionable silence.   
  
After breakfast the two of them walked back to the palace and went to get ready for their trip to the prison.  T’Challa had given them the green light telling them good luck. He wished he could join them to see who won their little bet, but his money was on Mina even without the use of her abilities. 

When Mina emerged from her room she found Bucky casually leaning against the wall waiting for her.  “Ready?” He asked as he pushed himself off the wall.   


“Yep,” she smiled at him.  “And just so you know, you’re gonna lose.”   


“You’re competitive aren’t you doll?”   


“Oh yes, I get it from my father.  Remind me to tell you about the checker incident of ‘09 later.”   


He looked at her in amusement, “Do I even want to know?”   


“It’s kind of funny looking back on it now, but when it happened I was pissed,” she shook her head.  “My dad still tells the story to complete strangers when they strike up a conversation with him.”   


Bucky did the math and discovered she would have been fifteen when whatever happened had happened.  She was still so young compared to him, but he liked how easy it was to talk to her, how easygoing she was.  She was the type of person that could make you feel comfortable without even trying.    


They boarded a jet and took off for the prison.  One of the Dora Milaje greeted them and led them to the room where Stellan was sitting.  Mina was a little disappointed it wasn’t Jeffrey, but that would give her a bit of an unfair advantage.  This way they were both on equal footing.   


“Who goes first?”  She looked up at Bucky who was studying the back of the man’s head.   


“You can go first,” she told him.   


He stepped into the room, and Mina couldn’t help but grin.  There was no way he was going to charm this man. Even with his new haircut, and clean-shaven face Bucky was still pretty intimidating.     


Bucky leaned against the table and stared at the man for a moment, “Look, I know you probably don’t like being here anymore that I like being here questioning you.  We already know that your buddy Jeffrey revealed one of your boss’s names, all we want now is their location.”   


Mina bit her lip as she watched him talk to the guy.  The man was playing hardball, not giving Bucky any clues or answers.  He mainly stayed silent, but sometimes he would tell Bucky to go to hell.   


When fifteen minutes was up Bucky stepped out of the room and looked at Mina, “He’s all yours, doll.”   


As Mina stepped into the room Bucky took her place at the two way mirror to watch her interaction with the man.  She had a sultry smile on her face that made Bucky clench his fists together, he wished it was directed at him and not the scuzzball in the interrogation room. “Hello Stellan, do you remember me?”  She sat down in front of him, never breaking eye contact with the man.   


The man looked her up and down, Bucky wondered what the look on his face was.  If Mina hated it she didn’t let it show. “Yeah, you were that chick that knocked Jeffrey and Karl off their feet that day.”   


“Sorry about that,” she said tucking a piece of hair behind her ear and looking down bashfully.  “I was just doing my job. I really wanted to impress King T’Challa.”   


“You know you could really impress our bosses.  They could use someone like you.” It was a good thing Bucky couldn’t see the grin the man was giving her or else he might have gone in and choked him.  “They’re always looking for talented individuals like yourself.”   


She leaned forward a little bit, “And where could I find these scientists?  I mean I can probably help you all out, T’Challa trusts me, and I’ve befriended Shuri.”   


Bucky stepped closer waiting to see what the man would say.  “I don’t know where the main lab is, we just had a base in South Africa where we would meet with some of our boss’s cronies, the ones higher up on the food chain.”   


“And where exactly is this place located in South Africa?”   


“Cape Town, it’s easy to blend in there, but if you want to know where the building is you gotta get us out of here and we’ll take you to it sweet cheeks.”   


Bucky stormed over to the door and shoved it open, “Mina, can I talk to you for a moment?”  He glared at the man cuffed to the seat.   


There was a gleam in Stellan’s eyes as he realized the possessiveness in Bucky’s, the subtle way his jaw clenched when he looked at Stellan.  Mina, on the other hand, was too startled to even notice. “Do you not like how I’m talking to your girl? Might want to work on how you please her because sweet cheeks there was ready to leave you for me,” the man cackled.   


Bucky went to step forward, but Mina put her hands on his chest, “Bucky.”   


“Move Mina,” his voice had an edge to it.   


“James,” she snapped.  Bucky blinked and looked down at her angry features, “Hallway, now.”   


“Oh-ho-ho well I like them feisty.  You and me could have some fun baby,” the man commented.   


Mina shoved Bucky out of the room the moment the man said what he did.  “What the hell was that?” She snapped at him.   


Bucky was still glaring at the door they had just gone through.  “I didn’t like how he was speaking to you.”   


Mina rolled her eyes, “I can handle a few lewd comments, James.”  His eyes met hers then, there was such intensity behind them, and he liked how his name rolled off her tongue.  “You're lucky my time was up anyway, if it wasn’t I would have made you forfeit.”   


Bucky was confused for a moment and then he remembered the bet the two of them had made before coming here.  “I’m sorry,” he conceded. “But you would have won anyway, you at least got a possible place where they meet.”   


He saw her calm down and take in a deep breath, “Tonight James, and I’m making you watch the cheesiest, girliest, chick flick for that little outburst.”  She turned on her heel and walked away.


	12. Chapter Eleven

T’Challa had a good collection of movies set up in the library.  They were located in a secret room where there were bookshelves filled with DVDs and Blu-Rays.  Movies she had never seen and some she hadn’t seen since she was a child lined the walls of the room.  Mina had stared at them all opened mouthed. T’Challa said that it was a collection of his, his father’s, his mother’s, and Shuri’s movies.   


“I’ve died and gone to movie heaven,” she said as she ran her hands over the covers of some she didn’t even think were on DVD or Blu-Ray.   


“Pick out however many you like.  Just bring them back as soon as you’re done.  Shuri might come after you if she can’t find one of her favorite films.”  He tugged at the collar of his shirt, “I have first-hand experience with that.”   


Mina smirked, “Did you take something without permission?”   


“I would never,” T’Challa said in mock horror.  “I always ask before taking movies.”   


“Sure,” she drew out the word as she plucked several movies off the shelves.  She wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to watch. She hadn’t been completely serious earlier when she had told Bucky she was going to make him watch a chick flick, she did want to torture him a little bit, but she was also curious to see if he would find it interesting.   


“I will be working on a plan for going to South Africa if you need me.  Enjoy your evening Mina.”   


“You too,” she called out absentmindedly as she continued to load her arms up with movies.  Once she had a good amount picked out she carried them back to her room and then left again to gather provisions like drinks, popcorn, candy, and other snacks they could munch on.   


She set bowls on her little coffee table and filled them up with everything she had grabbed from the kitchen.  Next she hopped in the shower and washed off quickly. She threw on mix match socks, long pants, and a tank top.     


Just as she was throwing her hair up into a haphazard bun there was a knock on her door and her heart skipped a beat.  She rushed over and threw open the door. Bucky was standing there in a white t-shirt and black sweats. “I’m here for movie night,” he seemed a little unsure of how the night was going to go and if she was still mad at him or not.   


She stepped aside and let him in.  “I’ve lined up a selection of movies, I thought I’d see which one you wanted to watch and then we could go from there.”   


He walked over to her TV stand and looked over the four movies she had picked out.    _ Breakfast at Tiffany’s _ ,  _ The Mummy _ (the Brendan Fraser one), the live-action  _ Cinderella _ , and  _ Big Hero 6 _ .   He flipped the covers over on each of them and read the synopsis for them.  When he was done he turned to Mina, “Which one do you want to watch the most?”   


Her heart was torn, they were all her favorites, she was hoping he would say which one he liked the sound of best, she would agree, and they would start the movie.  But of course he had to be a gentleman and ask her which one she wanted to watch the most.   


She walked over and looked at all the movies.  “ _ Cinderella _ is very good, and as far as live action remakes go this one was great.  But  _ Big Hero 6 _ is such an adorable movie.  It’s like do I want to go with heroes or princesses?”  She let out a little sigh.   


Bucky was smiling at the look on her face.  “Why don’t we watch both of them?”   


She looked up from the movies, “But movie night was only supposed to be for one movie.”   


“It’s fine,” Bucky said.  “If I get bored after the first one I can leave.”  She punched him as hard as she could on the arm. “Feel better?”   


“Yes,” she pouted as she popped  _ Cinderella _ in.   


She joined Bucky on her couch.  He was sitting at the far right end, and Mina decided to sit in the middle next to him.  Bucky watched her out of the corner of his eye as she situated herself on the couch. It took her a moment to get comfortable, and once she was good she started the movie.   


Bucky wasn’t sure what to expect, but he actually found himself enjoying the film.  At one point he caught Mina whispering the lines. When the Prince and Cinderella were in the secret garden on the swing Mina bit her lip.     


“I love this part,” she said quietly, almost shyly.  “It’s my favorite part of the film.”   


Bucky didn’t say anything as he kept watching to see what else happened.  When the clock struck midnight Cinderella began to run away from the Prince.  Mina was clutching the collar of her shirt totally caught up in the movie ignoring his presence all together it seemed.   


When the movie was over she looked at Bucky, “So?”   


He gave her a small smile, “It was great, I enjoyed it.”   


She hummed, pleased with his answer.  “I’m glad, now you get to see  _ Big Hero 6 _ .”

They ended up watching all four movies that night.  Bucky seemed to really enjoy  _ The Mummy _ , it made him laugh more than the others had.   At the end of the evening Mina walked with Bucky over to her door.   


“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said quietly.   


“Tomorrow,” he agreed.  He turned to go leave, but stopped at turned back to Mina.  “This has been driving me insane all night.” He reached behind her and tugged her hair free from the rubber band.  His fingers ran through the silky locks, but he quickly pulled his hands away. “Leave your hair down doll, it’s too pretty to put up in a bun like that.”  Then he fled the room leaving Mina’s cheeks flaming.

Once he was gone she dove for her phone and called Natasha.  “What can I help you with now Mina?” She couldn’t wait to hear the next installment of the ‘Will they won’t they’ saga Mina and Bucky were currently going through.

Mina’s heart felt like it would never slow down.  “I was watching some movies with him tonight because he lost a bet, don’t ask it’s too much to explain right now.  And as he went to leave he took my hair down out of its bun and ran his fingers through it!”

Natasha coughed as she almost choked on her water.  “He did what?!”

Mina was nodding her head like Natasha could see it, “I think I turned fire engine red, and he fled.  My heart still hasn’t calmed down.”

“Wait, wait, wait was it like a lingering touch?  Was there any warning? What did he say?!” The saga was just getting good.  She hab been waiting for Barnes to make a slip up like this.

“He said my hair was too pretty to be put up like that, and then he called me doll.  He’s been doing that a lot lately.” She bit her lip trying to contain her goofy grin.

“He likes you!”  Natasha insisted.  “Go for it! Ask him out!”

“Nat,” Mina sighed in exasperation.  She was tired of having this conversation with her.  “I can’t do that.”

“Oh come on, tonight wasn’t proof enough that he likes you?”  Natasha scoffed. “Just suck it up and ask him out!”

Mina said she’d think about it and hung up so she could try and get some sleep before tomorrow.  

 

“Steve you’re not listening to me!  I. Took. Her. Hair. Down. And. Ran. My. Fingers. Through. It.”  He enunciated every word hoping to get his friend to understand what had happened the previous night.  It was the next day and Bucky hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep the night before. He kept replaying that moment in his mind over and over again. He still couldn’t believe he had done that, but the moment he stepped into her room and saw she had piled her hair into a messy bun he was to tug it free and let it cascade down around her shoulders.   


“Yeah, so?”   


Bucky groaned, “Steve!  She doesn’t know about my feelings!  And like a dumbass I’ve been calling her ‘doll’ and then to top it all off I tug her God damn hair down like I have a right to do so!”   


Steve was trying not to laugh at his friend, and so were half the Avengers who were listening in.  They had bets going to see how long Bucky could hold out before he broke down and kissed her. Natasha had already filled them in on Mina’s side of the story and now they were all getting to hear Bucky’s.   


“Look I’ve said my piece on this,” Steve started.  “You know where I stand, you know where T’Challa stands.  And you trying to stay away from her clearly isn’t working.”   
Bucky put his face in his hands, “Clearly.”   


Steve shook his head and grinned, “What happened to the confident Bucky, the man that could charm the pants off anyone?”   


“That Bucky doesn’t want to come out and play right now,” Bucky told him.  “Look I’m just going to pretend like things are normal, and hopefully she won’t bring it up.  I gotta go run a reconnaissance mission with T’Challa today, I’ll contact you with more details on the mission later.”  He hit the end button and stood up to go find T’Challa.   


He was in his office looking over some paperwork.  He set it all down when he heard Bucky enter. “Are you ready to go?”   


“Yes,” Bucky said.  “Very much so.”   


“Before we go there is something I’d like you to see,” T’Challa said mysteriously.  He led him through the palace halls to a window overview a field where the Dora Milaje were currently sparring with Mina.     


“Shuri finished the armor,” Bucky realized as he saw the turquoise flames that were Mina’s powers.   


“She did,” T’Challa confirmed.  “Shuri told her this morning at breakfast, and they started their training today.  She’s an excellent fighter.” T’Challa looked away from the scene below them. “I’m thinking of asking her to stay for a little while longer after the mission is over.”   


Bucky looked up at T’Challa startled, “Really?”   


T’Challa nodded, “Shuri still wants to work with her on creating new tech, and Okoye likes the challenge she offers.  It won’t be permanent, but I think she would be happy with the arrangement.”   


Bucky thought so too, but a selfish part of him didn’t want her to stay.  He wanted her to come back to the compound with him so he could see her almost every day, and be near her even if it was only as a friend.  “When are you going to offer this to her?”   
“Tonight, once we come back from South Africa,” T’Challa supplied.   


Bucky kept quiet thinking over what this would mean.  Once the mission was over if Mina agreed to stay in Wakanda then he would be going back to the compound alone.  It would be months, maybe a year, before he saw her again. “We should go,” he said, turning away from the window and heading toward the jet that was going to take them to Cape Town.


	13. Chapter Twelve

Shuri had practically skipped into the kitchen the next morning as Mina was brewing a fresh pot of coffee.  “Guess what?”

Mina didn’t really feel like playing guessing games so early in the morning especially after getting so little sleep the night before, but she thought she’d humor Shuri since she seemed really excited.  “T’Challa finally got one of your Vine references?”

Shuri snorted, “As if.”  She grabbed her travel mug from one of the cabinets.  “I finished the suits for the Dora Milaje. You all can start training today.”

That got Mina to perk up, “Really?”

Shuri nodded as she dumped the coffee into her mug.  “Yep, I’ve alerted Okoye and they said that after breakfast you all could gather outside and begin training.” 

Mina practically scarfed down her food and went to change into her own suit.  She practically raced through the halls of the palace to the designated training area outside the palace walls where the Dora Milaje were waiting for her.

Okoye greeted her as she came skidding to a stop in front of the general.  “Good morning Mina, I see Shuri told you the good news.”

Mina nodded surveying the new armor that the women were wearing.  It didn’t appear to be any different from what they usually wore, but Mina knew that looks could be deceiving.  “She did, I came as quickly as I could.”

Shuri came strolling up a few minutes later and took a seat off to the side.  She told them that she needed a few of them to take some hits from Mina’s magic so she could see how the armor held up against it in real-time.

A few of the warriors volunteered and they began their training simulation.  Mina knew how fierce the Dora Milaje could be, but fighting against them was a whole new level of intenseness.  It was like battling Natasha and Steve at once. 

Shuri shouted at the women to let Mina get a shot in and when they backed off Mina took aim and hit one of the women with her powers.  They waited to see if something would happen, Mina hadn’t used the full force of her abilities in case the armor didn’t hold up as well as Shuri thought it would.

When nothing happened Shuri cheered and told them to continue their little training simulation while she took notes.

Okoye joined the fray soon after and Mina was dodging attacks left and right.  She took a few hits, but thanks to the suit Shuri had made for her the effects weren’t as bad as they could have been.

Mina dodged an attack that Okoye sent her way.  The blunt end of the spear barely missing Mina’s face, it was the closest she had come to being hit there.  She righted herself immediately and grinned at Okoye, “Cutting it a bit close aren’t we?”   


Okoye returned Mina’s grin, “You’ll heal.”   


Mina blocked another attack from one of the other women in the group and shot a bolt of her power toward Ayo.  She went flying backward, but she was unharmed when she stood up and came rushing to attack again.   


Shuri was sitting on the sidelines recording everything making mental notes on things she might need to change when she upgraded the armor.  “Okay, okay I’ve seen enough!” She shouted at the others.   


Everyone came to a stop and Mina sucked in several deep breaths.  “I think that’s the most fun I’ve ever had when training,” Mina told the women with a smile.  They each went to grab a bottle of water when Okoye’s Kimoyo beads started to beep.   


T’Challa’s face appeared, “We need medical attention at once, Bucky was shot.”  Icy dread filled Mina as she stared at T’Challa. She thought she had heard him wrong, they weren’t supposed to engage in any fighting.  It was supposed to be a simple mission, in and out with no complications. “We’ll be there in less than twenty.” With the ETA Mina rushed to her room to change so that she could meet them in the medical wing of the palace.  She prayed that Bucky was all right.

 

The moment they brought Bucky into the medical wing of the palace was a blur.  His clothes were bloodied and sticking to his skin, the doctors were cutting the garments off of him to access his wounds.  T’Challa was following along closely behind them, his shoulders tight with tension, his brows furrowed, guilt in his eyes.

Mina rushed over to him and grabbed him by the arms.  “What happened?” Her voice was ragged, and T’Challa gave her a sympathetic look.  He knew how close the two of them were becoming, how her feelings were shifting into something more than friendship.  He could see the pain in her eyes, the worry that she might actually lose someone she cared about.

“I don’t know, it all happened so fast.  One minute we were observing a building and the next thing I know he’s yanking me out of the way and groaning in pain.  I heard the gunshots and knew he’d been hit, but that he’d also saved my life. I got him back to the jet and we headed her straight away.”

Shuri walked over to Mina, she was sniffling, “He’ll be okay Mina, he’s… he’s strong.”

The two girls hugged, Mina finally letting the tears slide down her cheeks.  She couldn’t imagine what life would be like without Bucky there. And then there was Steve.  Was she going to have to tell him that his best friend had died, and this time for good?

She kept picturing the doctors as they wheeled him into the operation room.  She faintly remembered hearing them saying he had been shot in the stomach and chest, and she believed she heard that he had even been shot in the leg.  

Mina began to pace as Shuri and T’Challa took a seat on one of the couches, T’Challa wrapped a comforting arm around his sister.  Mina felt numb, was she in shock? She just felt like her entire system had shut down and she couldn’t feel anything except the painful pounding of her heart in her chest.

No one had spoken for quite some time, all of them trying to process what had happened.  “I should call Steve,” Mina’s voice was barely a whisper. “He needs to know.”

Shuri looked over at her friend, “Let me call him, you’re too shook up.”   
Mina shook her head, “No, I need to do this.  I need to do something.” Shuri went to say something, but T’Challa put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head.  

Mina pulled her phone out of her back pocket and headed to a more private location to call Steve.  “Hey Mina!” He sounded so chipper, he didn’t even know his best friend was in surgery. Mina broke down into tears, all her stress and worry just overpowering her at last. “Mina, what’s wrong?”  Steve’s whole tone changed in an instant.   


“It’s Bucky,” she sobbed.  “He was shot.”   


There was silence and then, “He isn’t…?”  Steve couldn’t bring himself to say the word ‘dead’.  He had lost Bucky once, he couldn't imagine losing him a second time.   


“No,” she sniffled.  “They’re working on him now, they’re almost a hundred percent positive that he’s going to make a full recovery, it’s just that they have to be careful because of where the bullets are.  They could nick a major artery with a few of them.”   


Steve was sitting in the living room of the compound, his head was spinning, and several of the others looked over at him in worry.  “Do you need me to come over there?”   


Mina rubbed her eyes with the back of her sleeve.  “No, not unless you want to. I can update you when they bring him out of surgery.”   


“Do that,” he said.  “I won’t come unless it’s necessary.”  There was a pause and then, “Everything’s going to be okay Mina.”   


“I know,” she whispered.  “I’m just so scared.”   


Someone called Steve’s name, it sounded like Sam.  “I hate to do this to you, but duty calls. Just call me whenever and I’ll try to answer if I can.”   


“All right, stay safe,” she told him.   


“You too Mina.”  The line went dead.   


Mina walked back into the room to see the doctor talking with T’Challa.  Both he and Shuri looked relieved and Mina relaxed a little. “Thank you, Doctor,” T’Challa said.  He turned to see Mina lingering in the doorway waiting for him to finish up. “Bucky will make a full recovery.”  Mina’s eyes closed and she let out a shaky breath. “He’s going to be out of it for a while, they have him on a lot of medications, but his body will burn through them quickly.  He should be healed within a few days if he takes it easy and lets his body rest.”   


“Can I see him?”  She asked.   


“Yes, you can,” he said.  “We’ll be around if you need us.”  T’Challa shooed Shuri away even though she protested a little bit.  Mina entered the room where Bucky was laying on the bed. His shirt was off and she could see the bandages covering the places where he had been hit.  He was hooked up to all kinds of machines, his heart rate was steady and so were his other vitals.   


Mina pulled a chair over to his bed and took his hand.  “You really scared me there Bucky. This was just supposed to be a simple mission, in and out no complications.  When T’Challa called Okoye and said you had been shot I was so worried that you wouldn’t make it.” She squeezed his hand just to reassure herself that he was still there and that he was still alive.  A fresh wave of tears filled her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. “When you’re better I’m going to kick your ass for scaring me half to death.”   


“I would expect nothing less doll,” he croaked.  One of his eyes opened slightly, trying to adjust to the light.  “God it hurts.”   


She smiled a little, it was so good to hear his voice.  “Well I should expect so, you were shot in five different places.  What the hell happened?” His fingers tightened slightly around hers and she squeezed a little harder.   


“Everything was going fine,” he recalled.  He winced in pain as he tried taking a breath, one of the bullets had punctured his lung.  “We were looking around this one building that claimed it was condemned, but it looked too… pristine?  I don’t know if that’s the right word to use or not. We weren’t reading any heat signatures, and we tried to blend in, but all of a sudden this SUV pulls up and people began shooting at us.  I threw myself in front of T’Challa since he wasn’t wearing his suit and he managed to drag me to the safety of the jet before I passed out. I'm surprised we even managed to get that far.”   


“Do you think they were waiting to see if anyone would come snooping around since their three guys didn’t come back with the vibranium?”   


“Most likely,” he said.  He rolled his head so that he could look at her better.  “Have you been crying?”   


“Yes,” she wasn’t going to lie to him, especially when he could clearly see her eyes were red and puffy.  “I was so worried, and I know that you’re this super soldier and you’re resilient as all get out, but I was just so worried that this was what was going to do you in.”   


“It’s gonna take a lot more than a few little bullets to put me out to pasture.”  That made Mina crack up laughing. “What?” Bucky asked in confusion.   


“‘Put me out to pasture’?  What kind of saying is that?”   


“Oh hardy har har, pick on the old man and his funny sayings,” he rolled his eyes and shook his head.  She kept laughing, and he chuckled a little, but it hurt too much so he had to stop.   


“Does your age bother you?”  She asked once her laughing had died down and she could actually form a sentence again.   


_ Only when it comes to you _ , he thought.  “Sometimes. I just feel so out of place in this time period.  Steve, well Steve has adjusted nicely, he doesn’t let things bother him, but with me, I’m like a fish out of water.”  He paused waiting to see if she would laugh at him again.   


She held up her hands, Bucky’s hand still linked with one of them.  “I’m not going to laugh a that one, I’ve used it too.”   


He was relieved that she knew that one.  “It’s also hard to make friends when you used to be a killer for HYDRA.”   


“But that wasn’t you,” she said.  “People can’t fault you for what you did when they had control of your mind.”   


“I’m pretty sure Tony does,” he looked away from her.  “I killed his parents, and he hated me for so long. I think he’s trying to forgive me for Steve’s sake, but I can still see it in his eyes.”   


“Tony’s one person,” Mina argued.   


“Mina, please.”  He hated that even though she knew what he had done as the Winter Soldier she still saw the good in him, still had faith in him.   


Mina could see that he was becoming a bit distressed by this conversation, so she changed it quickly.  “T’Challa and Shuri were here, they were worried about you. I’m sure they’ll come to see you later.” She looked at the clock on the bedside table and sighed, “I should go and let you get some sleep, the doctor said if you rested properly that you could be healed in a few days.”   


She went to get up, but Bucky held onto her hand tighter.  “Stay,” he whispered. “Please.”   


Slowly, she sat back down in her chair.  “Are you sure?”   


He nodded, “Just for a little bit longer.”   


They talked for a while and Mina rested her head on the edge of the bed.  Her eyes slowly started getting heavier and a large yawn escaped her. “I’m sleepy,” she mumbled.   


Buck smiled, “I can see.”   


“Good night, Bucky.”   


“Good night doll,” he responded as her eyelids finally closed and her breathing softened.  He unlaced their fingers, and after a moment’s hesitation, began to stroke her hair. He talked to her knowing that she wouldn’t hear or remember a word in the morning.  “I really like you, Mina. More than I’ve liked anyone in a long time. Steve and everyone is telling me to go for this, but I can’t. But it’s so hard for me to stay away from you doll.  You make it impossible. Your laugh, your eyes, your everything. T’Challa’s going to ask you to stay and I think that might be for the best. Maybe some distance from you will be better for me.  Maybe I can get over you once this is all said and done. I don’t know, probably not, but a guy can dream. Anyway, I just wanted to get that off my chest even though you can’t hear a word I’m saying right now.  But I just had to tell you that I care for you, much more than a friend or work acquaintance should. Seeing you crying over me also hurts, you deserve to be with a guy that isn't going to get shot at all the time.  A guy that will come home at the end of the day, kiss you, and promise you the world. That's just not something I can do....” He felt an ache in his chest as he said those words, but he knew they were true. Today had only proven that he should stay away from her, he didn't want to see her like this ever again.   


The room lapsed into silence for a while and then he heard Mina say, “James.”  It was a low moan and Bucky froze, just staring at her for a moment. She shifted in her sleep, but she never woke up.   


Bucky laid in the bed for another hour just replaying that one little moment over and over in his mind.  Mina started to stir again and Bucky quickly pretended to be asleep. He heard her stand, felt her lips brush his forehead, heard her whisper good night, and then slipped out of the room.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

It had happened again.  She had had another dream about Bucky, but this time when she woke up he had been asleep beside her.  Of course not in the way she wanted it to be, but still.   


Their hands had been unclasped when she had awoken from her little nap beside his bed.  Bucky had been asleep, so she took the opportunity to brush some of his hair back and kiss his forehead.  She had just been so relieved when he had woken up and was all right.   


She slipped out of the room and down the hall thinking about the dream she had had.   


_ She and Bucky were in her room watching a movie.  They were sitting closer than they usually did which surprised her.  She couldn’t remember what they were watching, she only remembered the credits had started rolling.  She turned to ask Bucky what he had thought of this one and she discovered that he had been staring at her.  “What?” She asked with a little laugh. _ _   
_

_ He hesitated and then launched into a long speech, “I like you, Mina.  More than I have anyone else in a long time. At first I was uncomfortable around you, I knew you looked up to me, but I didn’t know you either.  And then once I got to know you I fell for you even more. From the first night I saw you at Tony’s party I fell for you. I want to be with you Mina, but I don’t know if being with you will ever be an option because of my past.” _ _   
_

_ Mina sat there for a moment and just stared at Bucky.  “Bucky, I like you too. I think I always have, but I was just denying my feelings for you.  I’ve known about you since I was a teenager and you just seemed like this incredible guy, and now here I am in Wakanda with you and my opinion of you hasn’t changed a bit.”  She moved closer to him and took his hands in hers. “I know you’re still haunted by your past, but I want to help you move past that. I want to be with you.” _ _   
_

_ The pained look on his face broke her heart, “Mina….” _ _   
_

_ “No,” she said harshly.  “Don’t talk yourself out of this.  You just told me that you had feelings for me, you can’t back out now.  We both need to stop denying ourselves the chance to be happy.” _ _   
_

_ He tangled his fingers in her hair much like he had the other night when he had taken her hair down.  “What if I hurt you somehow?” _ _   
_

_ She shook her head, “You won’t.” _ _   
_

_ “But--” _ _   
_

_ “James,” she said forcefully.  “You won’t.” Before she could reconsider what she was doing she leaned in and kissed him.  His lips were soft against hers, her hands wrapped around his neck, and she threaded her fingers through his hair.  Bucky picked her up gently so that she was straddling his lap. He broke the kiss momentarily to look up at her. _ _   
_

_ “Are you sure?”  He asked hesitantly. _ _   
_

_ She nodded, “Yes.”  He began kissing her again, a bit more roughly than before.  His hands slipped under her tank top and she shivered as his metal hand touched her bare skin.  It was such an unusual feeling, something she wasn’t used too. “James,” she moaned as he trailed his lips down her neck, nipping at the sensitive skin at the crook of her neck. _   


It wasn’t long after that that the dream faded away and she was awake again.     


She slumped against her door and let out a frustrated moan.  Why did her traitorous subconscious have to do this to her?

 

T’Challa was in Bucky’s room the next morning when Mina arrived to check on him.  Bucky smiled when he saw her, trying not to let her know how much pain he actually was in.  The pain medications had worn off and the doctor hadn’t been by to give him more yet. “Hey doll, did you sleep all right?”   


She eyed him wearily, “You’re in pain aren’t you?”   


His smile faltered for a moment, “No, what makes you say that?”   


“Call it a woman’s intuition,” she moved closer.  She wanted to take his hand like she had the night before, but she kept it clenched at her side.  “Meds wear off already?”   


He nodded, “Yeah, my body’s burning through them quickly.  But it’s nothing I can’t handle. Don’t worry about me.”   


“You were shot, it’s a little hard not to worry about you."  She looked over at T’Challa, “Has the doctor seen him yet?”   


He nodded, “Not yet, but he should be here soon to check on him.”   


“You gonna be okay on your own?”  She asked Bucky. “I had plans to introduce Peter to Shuri today, but I can text Peter and tell him we’ll have to do it another day if you want some company.”   


“No, don’t cancel your plans for me, doll.  I’m sure Peter’s excited to meet Shuri and see her lab even if it is just through a screen.”   


Mina nodded, “All right.  I’ll bring you dinner later and maybe even a movie so we can watch something.”  She and T’Challa headed out into the hall and she looked up at him. “How’s he really doing?”   


“He’ll be in a bit of pain today, but honestly I’m pretty sure he can handle it after all he’s been through.  His wounds are healing remarkably well, and he should be able to leave the hospital wing tomorrow so he can finish recuperating in his own room.”     


“That’s a relief,” she said.  “Call me if you need anything, I’ll be back as soon as I can.”   


“I know you will,” T’Challa placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it.  “Try to have some fun today, yesterday was stressful for you, and Shuri is very excited to meet Peter.”   


They parted ways and Mina headed to Shuri’s lab where she was no doubt getting ready to video chat with Peter.     


Music was blaring when she arrived and she discovered Shuri was in the middle of working on a new suit that looked like it was for Peter.  “Is that for Peter?” Mina asked making Shuri jump.   


“Ah don’t scare me like that!”  She glared at her friend. “And yes, I figured if he’s getting shot at like Bucky then the vibranium in the suit will protect him from that.”  She held it up for Mina to see. “What do you think?”   


It looked like the one that he wore now, but with some subtle differences like the web design, and the spider looked slimmer than the one Tony had designed for him.  “It looks great Shuri! Peter will probably love it.”   


“It should work with Stark’s tech, so he’ll still hear FRIDAY, but I added some Shuri flare to it.”  She laid it back down on her table. “I won’t show it to him today. It’s not quite ready.”   


Mina took a seat beside her and said, “How do you make all these things so quickly?”   


Shuri gestured around her lab, “I have some of the best tech in the world, it’s not that hard.  Plus I stay up late some nights and work on all these ideas. I have so many, you know? Sometimes it’s a little hard to sleep with all the ideas rattling around up here,” she tapped on the side of her head.   


Mina’s phone buzzed and she saw it was from Peter.   
****

**Spidey-Boy:** Can you call me now?  I want to finally meet Shuri!   
****

**Mina:**  Yeah, yeah, give me a second.   


Mina opened up her Skype account and saw that Peter was on and raring to go.  She hit the video call button and it began to ring. A moment later Peter’s face appeared and he smiled at her.  He was currently at the compound in his room. “Hey, what’s up Witchy Woman?”   


“Nothing much Spidey-Boy,” she grinned when Peter’s cheeks turned pink.  “Peter meet Shuri, Shuri meet Peter.”   


“Hello,” Peter beamed at Shuri.  “It’s nice to finally meet you. Mina’s been telling me that we’d get along great.”   


Shuri chuckled, “Everyone has been telling me that we’d get along too.”  The two of them began to talk and share their ideas with one another. Shuri showed him her latest design in armor, and Mina did a little demonstration for Peter.  He began asking her all kinds of questions about how she came up with the design and how well it fit.   


Mina sat back and let them talk to one another.  They shared vine references with one another. Shuri telling Peter about her brother’s embarrassing sandals and how she had said, “What are those?”, at him when she had seen them.  Peter laughed and told her about how he had several references when he was out saving the day.   


After about an hour into their Skype session Peter looked over at Mina and asked, “How’s Bucky doing?”   


“Recovering,” Mina told him.  “He’s in a bit of pain because the medications wear off quicker for him, but he’ll make a full recovery soon.  How’s Steve?”   


“Ready to hop a Quinjet to Wakanda right now,” Peter said truthfully.  “He’s been super stressed since last night. Tony had to bench him until he calmed down.”   


“I should call him,” Mina said.  “I’ll be right back.” The two of them said okay and Mina took the stairs to the landing pad.     


“Mina, how is he?”  Steve answered almost immediately.  He sounded out of breath and Mina figured he had been on a run trying to get all the stress out.   


“He’s good, he’s in some pain, but the doctor said he’d make a full recovery.”  She started to pace, “Peter said you were ready to hop on a Quinjet to Wakanda and that Tony had to bench you.”   


“He did, but he just said it was until Buck made the recovery.  And Peter is right, it’s taking all I have not to get on one of the jets and come straight to Wakanda.”   


“Maybe you should,” Mina suggested.  “We could use some help with this. This is a little more complicated than some insurgents that want to steal vibranium.  We’re talking about a group of people that want to build a weapon.”   


“I’ll call T’Challa and ask him if it’s all right if a couple of us come over and help out.  It’ll probably be me, Nat, Clint, Wanda, and Sam. Possibly Pietro, he’s dying to see Wakanda.”   


“Oh God, please do not unleash Pietro Maximoff to the Wakandan people.  I think he’d drive everyone crazy.”   


Steve laughed, “You’re not wrong.  I’ll see how many of us T’Challa will allow to come and I’ll get back to you.”   


“Sounds good,” she was glad that more backup was possibly coming.  “I need to go, I left Shuri and Peter unsupervised and who knows what those two will cook up in that lab of hers.”   


Steve laughed, “Go, I’ll text you later with details.”   


Mina headed back to the lab and discovered that Peter and Shuri were talking about suit designs for everyone on the team.  She sat back and let them work.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

Mina was in the kitchen later that evening making lasagna for everyone when T’Challa entered the room.  He had been passing by when the aroma had drawn him in. “It smells wonderful,” he leaned against the counter and watched as she spread the sauce.   


“Thank you,” she put on a layer of noodles.  “I figured I’d take some to Bucky, and we could have this for dinner.”   


“Good idea.”  T’Challa was silent for a moment and then asked, “Mina, how would you feel about staying a little longer in Wakanda after the mission is over?”   


Mina stood there staring at T’Challa in shock, “Did I hear that right?  Did you ask me if I wanted to stay in Wakanda?”   


T’Challa chuckled at her surprised expression, “Not forever.  It’s just that Shuri loves the fact that you’re here and the Dora Milaje like training with you.  I figured you could stay a little while longer if you’re not needed anywhere else.”   


Mina stood there completely stunned by this.  She hadn’t expected to be asked to stay for a longer period of time.  “I’m so honored that you all want me to stay and train with you all. I just need to check with Tony and Steve and make sure they’re cool with it, but if they were then I don’t see why not.”   


T’Challa nodded, “Of course.  I completely understand that. I just wanted to extend the offer and to tell you that you are welcome here anytime.”   


“Thank you T’Challa, that means a great deal to me.”  She shoved the lasagna into the oven and asked, “Did Steve get in contact with you?”   


“About him and a few others coming to help us with this new problem?  Yes, he did, and have agreed to let them come. It will be good for us now that we know we’re up against a bigger threat.”   


“I agree,” she said as she took a seat beside him.  “I’ll feel better knowing we’ll have backup if things take a turn for the worst like they did with you and Bucky the other day.”   


“I have a feeling that this isn’t just going to be a quick solution, this is HYDRA proportions.  We don’t know how big their operation is, or how many people work for them.”   


“We don’t even know their motive behind creating this weapon,” she bit her nail.  “World domination? Do they want to destroy a country or a group of people? What is their endgame?”   


“We will find that out Mina, and we won’t let that happen.”   


When the lasagna was done she cut some pieces for her and Bucky and then told T’Challa that he and the others could have the rest.  She grabbed the movies she had picked out off the table and headed to the medical wing to see Bucky.   


He had his eyes closed when she entered the room and she was afraid to wake him.  “Thank God, you’re finally here. I’ve been bored out of my mind all day.” He blinked several times and looked at Mina who was standing there with the movies in her hands.   
“Why didn’t you try to find something on TV?”  She asked as she opened the first DVD case and popped the movie in.   


“I didn’t know what to watch, there were just so many choices and I got tired of trying to find something good.”   


She snorted and passed him a plate of lasagna after he had sat up.  “Well then I guess it’s a good thing I’m here now.” She dragged another chair over so she could prop her feet up.  She hit play and the open screen for  _ National Treasure _ came on.   


They ate in silence, both of them engrossed in the movie to talk.  Sometimes Bucky would ask her questions and she tried to answer them without giving anything away.  When the movie was done and dinner had been eaten Mina turned her chair to face Bucky. “How do you feel?”     


He shrugged, “Better than earlier, the pain is starting to go away.  Just really bored,” they both chuckled.   


“Well tomorrow you should be moving back into your room.”  She twirled a piece of hair around her absentmindedly, Bucky watched her.  He noticed she had been wearing it down a lot more since he had told her it looked better down.  “Steve and a few of the others are coming.”   


Bucky gave her a look, “Do they not think we can handle this on our own?”   


“No it’s not that, it’s just where these people seem to have a bigger operation than we were led to believe, we think it’s best if we have more people helping us.  I know Steve is coming, possibly Sam and Nat. Wanda is also a possibility. To be honest I’m kind of relieved. With them here we can cover more ground and bounce more ideas off of one another.”   


“True,” Bucky agreed.  “As long as it wasn’t just because I was shot.”   


Mina shook her head and smiled, “I’m pretty sure Steve is coming because you were shot.  Tony had to bench him because he was so worried. I think he’ll calm down once he sees you and knows that you’re not about to die on us.”   


“Steve has always been a worrier,” Bucky said.  “Tough, but a worrier.”   


Mina smiled, “Tell me about him from back in the day before he became this super soldier.”   


Bucky eased back on his pillows, “He’s actually not much different.  He was shorter of course, but he was never one to run away from a fight.  He wanted so badly to fight that he would fake his enlistment forms. He felt bad that other men got to fight while he didn’t.”   


“But then they injected him with the serum and it turned him into Captain America, right?”   


“Yeah, and the first time I saw him I thought I had lost my mind.  He was so much bigger. I was used to small Steve, and then incomes him and for a moment I thought maybe I had finally snapped, but no he told me he had been injected with something that did that to him.”   


“And he finally got to fight,” she said.   


“And he finally got to fight,” he parroted.     


He yawned and Mina stood up, “I should go.  You need your rest.”   


He grabbed her hand and twined his fingers with hers, “Hey, tell me about how you discovered your powers.  I don’t know the story.”   


She hated to do it, but she let his hand go and said, “Tomorrow.  Get some rest Sergeant Barnes, we’ve got company coming and I’m pretty sure Steve’s going to be fussing over you like a mother hen tomorrow.”   


Bucky shook his head and chuckled, “Yes ma’am.”   


“Good night Bucky,” she said right before she slipped out the door.   


“Good night doll,” he whispered to the empty room.

 

The Quinjet landed on the landing pad the next afternoon.  Bucky was in a wheelchair beside Mina waiting for Steve and the others to disembark.  The two of them had argued about whether he should be out there when the others landed or not.  Mina thought he should stay in bed and rest while Bucky thought he should greet the others so he wouldn’t worry them.   


“You’re still healing!”  She yelled at him. He was being infuriating right now.  She was trying to get him to see reason, but he was too stubborn for his own good.   


“Yes, but I don’t want to be lying in my bed when they arrive!  I don’t need them fussing over me,” Bucky frowned at her.   


Mina ran a hand through her hair, “James, you are not going to be out there when Steve and the others arrive.”   


It did not go unnoticed by him that she had used his first name, a sure sign she was frustrated with him.  “The hell I’m not,” he argued back. “You can’t stop me.”   


“You two sound like an old married couple,” T’Challa had joked.  Both of them shot a glare at him and he held up his hands and slowly backed away.   


Bucky looked back at Mina, “You’ll be right there with me doll, and as soon as they arrive and go get settled you can take me to my room and fuss over me before Steve has a chance to do so.”   


Mina saw that there was no winning with him.  He was going to find a way out onto that landing pad if it was the last thing he did.  So it was better that she take him herself rather than let him find his own way out.   


The doors opened and a second later Pietro was in front of her scooping her into his arms and twirling her around.  “How’s my Little Mina?” He asked as he squeezed her. He turned to face Bucky and saw that the other man was glaring at him.  He merely smirked and sat Mina back down.   


“Hello Pietro, what have we said about the nickname?”   


He rolled his eyes, “Ah but you’re so much smaller than me.  The nickname is perfect.”   


“I prefer to call her Little Panther,” T’Challa said as he walked over to them.  He held out his hand, “It’s nice to meet you, Pietro.”   


“You too King T’Challa.”  He bowed slightly and T’Challa told him that he wasn’t big on formalities.     


Wanda and Nat hugged Mina next.  Clint just waved and said hello. Sam hugged her after that.  He turned and stuck his tongue out at Bucky who glared. Sam knew the moment Bucky was out of that wheelchair and fully recovered that he was dead meat, but it was worth it to see the jealous look on Bucky’s face.   


“Witchy Woman!”  A familiar voice yelled.   


Mina spun around and saw Peter standing there waving like an idiot, “Spidey-Boy!”  She rushed over and hugged her friend. “What’s up kid? How’d you convince Tony to let you come?”   


Steve walked over, “He was a stowaway.”   


“I had Aunt May’s permission, she just assumed Tony knew,” he said sheepishly.

Mina ruffled his hair and said, “Don’t worry kid, I’ll protect you from the big, bad Iron Man.”   


Steve wrapped his arms around Mina and whispered, “Why is Bucky not in his room?”   


Mina growled, “The stubborn, old man wouldn’t stay there.  He threatened to come out here by himself if I didn’t help him.  So it was either bring him out here or let the idiot possibly injure himself further by trying to come out here himself.”   


Steve laughed, “That sounds like him.”  He pulled away and headed toward Bucky, “Come on old man, let’s get you back inside.”   


“Steve!”  Mina yelled, half laughing at what he had just called Bucky, half mortified at what Bucky would think if Steve told him where the old man comment had come from.   


Bucky looked between them with a confused look on his face.  “Did I miss something?”   


“No,” Mina said.  She didn’t want him to know she had called him an old man.   


At the same time Steve said, “Yes.”   


Mina hip bumped Steve out of the way and took over pushing Bucky back inside.  “Steve, you look tired go unpack and get settled in. I can handle James.”   


Bucky had learned that she only used his first name when she was either trying to get his attention or she was frustrated with him, or that one night when she moaned it while she had been asleep.  “Still frustrated with me huh?”   


“Yes,” she said in a pouty tone.  “You should be resting and yet you’re out here greeting the team, I knew Steve was going to bring it up.  He didn’t think you should be out here either.”   


“Well I am and the two of you can calm down.  Now what did Steve mean when he called me ‘old man’?”   


Mina sighed, “When Steve hugged me, he asked me why you were out here and I called you a stubborn, old man.”   


Bucky laughed and shook his head, “You didn’t.”   


“I did,” Mina shook her head.  “But in my defense, you were acting like a stubborn, old man.”   


“Fine, I concede, I was being a stubborn, old man.” He turned his head and grinned up at her, causing her heart to flutter erratically in her chest.   


Mina pushed Bucky’s door open with her powers and wheeled him inside and over to his bed.  She helped him up and watched as he winced. She wished there was something she could do to make him feel better.  “Do you need anything?”   


He shook his head, “No, I’m good right now.  Thank you for agreeing to let me meet the team with you, doll.”   


“Of course,” she responded.  “I just didn’t want you to try and meet us out there yourself.”   


He patted the space beside him on the bed, “Come here.”   Mina’s heart started to pound as she crawled onto the bed and took a seat next to Bucky.  “Tell me about how you discovered your powers.” Since she wouldn’t tell him the night before he was hoping she would tell him now, plus he wanted to keep her to himself for just a little while longer now that the others were here.  He knew that she would probably want to hang out with her friends more than him now that they were here.   


“It was actually the first time that the Avengers made an appearance.  There was fighting in New York, some of the Chitauri had attacked the building where my family’s pizza shop was.  I actually managed to stop some of the attacks they sent our way with a force field of my powers. I don’t know how I did it, I just guess the fear of dying made me manifest?  My parents and I were so shocked. We managed to get everyone to safety and once the battle was over and my family moved I tried to recreate what I had done, and slowly but surely I did.”  She felt something resting on her shoulder and saw that Bucky had fallen asleep.   


She stayed perfectly still not wanting to disturb him.  Five minutes after discovering he was asleep Steve entered the room and arched an eyebrow at the sight of his best friend fast asleep on Mina’s shoulder.   


“Help,” she mouthed to him.   


He walked over and whispered, “Can you hold his head in place with your magic while we switch positions?”  She nodded and the two of them quickly switched. “Go, I got it from here.”   


“Thanks Steve, I’ll come check on him in a little bit.”  Steve gave her the thumbs up and rested his head against the wall closing his eyes as he did so.

  
  


It was a few hours later when Bucky woke up, but he instantly knew something was wrong.  He remembered falling asleep with his head resting on Mina’s shoulder, her flowery perfume overwhelming him in a good way, and her calming voice lulling him to sleep.  Now all he could smell was Steve’s body wash. He jerked back and found Steve grinning at him, “Expecting someone else?”   


“What the hell man?”  Bucky frowned, not happy to find his best friend in his room where the woman he currently harbored feelings for was supposed to be. “Where’s Mina?”   


“I relieved her of duty, she’s probably hanging out with the others right now.  Don’t worry she said she'd come check on you later.” Steve crossed his arms over his chest, “How are things between you two?  I’m assuming you still haven’t confessed.”   


Bucky scratched the back of his neck, “I did, but she was asleep when I did.”   


Steve threw up his hands, “Then you technically didn’t confess to her.”   


“Yes I did, just not in the way you wanted me to,” Bucky argued back.   


Steve stood up, “I’m not going to argue with you about this, especially since you’re still recovering.  Do you want something to eat?”   


There was a knock on the door and Mina peaked in, “Does anyone want cheeseburgers?  Clint decided to grill some.”   


“Do I actually get to come out of my room or are you going to bring them to me?”  Bucky asked.   


She stepped further into the room and placed her hands on her hips, “What would make you stay in here to eat?”   


“You and a movie,” he smirked, he liked the way her cheeks starting turning bright red, the subtle way she gulped.  It was becoming a more frequent occurrence when they were around one another, and he liked her reaction to him.   


Steve shook his head, trying not to grin.  These two idiots were perfect for one another.  “Fine,” she conceded. “I’ll bring you some burgers and a movie and we can eat together.”  She looked at Steve, “Will you be joining us?”   


“Oh no,” Steve said trying not to give away anything.  “I’ll eat with the others and catch up with T’Challa.”   


“Why?”  Bucky asked with a grin.  “You all but confirmed the two of you call one another almost every day to talk.  I figured the two of you would be all caught up by now.”   


Steve smacked his friend upside the head, “We do not talk on the phone everyday… it’s more like every other day.”   


Bucky chuckled, “Sure.”   


“But in all seriousness, I am going to eat with the others so the two of you enjoy your dinner together.”  He and Mina exited Bucky’s room so she could get their food and a movie. “I see things are better between you and Bucky.”   


“Yeah, he’s a little more at ease with me now.  Sometimes he’s still a little gruff, but not as much as he was at first.”   


“I’m glad,” Steve said.  “He seems happy.”   


“I hope so,” Mina replied.  “I know certain things still bother him, and all I want is for him to be able to move past those times and be happy.”   


“He will one day,” Steve replied.  “Maybe even with your help.”   


She looked up at him in surprise.  “You think?”   


“I do,” Steve told her as they stepped out onto one of the terraces where the others had gathered.  Mina broke off from Steve and walked over to Clint. “I need three,” she told him.   


“Little Mina, are you not joining us?”  Pietro asked.   


She turned to her friends, “Not tonight.  I’m eating with Bucky, it’s the only way I could get him to stay in his room and rest.”   


Natasha smirked at her, “Is there something you’d like to tell us?”   


“No,” Mina sputtered.  “Bucky and I are just friends.”   


“You sure about that?”  Peter asked. He and Shuri were sitting next to one another, but they had turned around to look at her.     


Okoye was grinning, “You two have become a lot more familiar with one another.  And I saw the tapes from the interrogation the other day.”   


Everyone’s head snapped toward Okoye, “What happened?!”  They all practically shouted.   


“What are you even talking about?”  Mina asked startled. “Nothing happened when we were interrogating that Stellan guy.  Bucky got a little upset by the comments he made, but that’s about it.”    


Okoye arched an eyebrow, “Are you sure?  Because he seemed pretty worked up by what the man said to you.”   


“Well I mean he just didn’t like how he was treating me….  It doesn’t mean anything. Bucky’s just a friend, and that’s all he sees me as.”   


“A friend who calls you doll,” T’Challa said getting in on the conversation.   


Everyone looked back at Mina.  “He calls you ‘doll’?” Wanda asked.   


“Sometimes,” she said as she squirmed in her place.  “It’s not a big deal I’m sure he calls a lot of women doll.”   


Natasha looked at all the women present and said, “Has he ever called any of you doll because he sure as hell hasn’t called me that.”   


“No,” they all said in response.   


Mina turned back to Clint who was staying out of this conversation.  He did not want to get in on this conversation and knew the others were making Mina uncomfortable. “Are the burgers done yet, Clint?”  She asked a bit desperately.   


Clint silently passed her a plate with the burgers done just how she and Bucky liked them and she practically fled the scene, her face bright red.     


When she got back to Bucky’s room with the burgers and a movie her face must still have been red because Bucky asked, “Doll, is something wrong?”   


She looked at him a bit startled and in a shaky tone said, “Nope, everything’s fine.”  She thrust the plate of food at him and said, “Hold this.” Then she turned to the TV and tried to get the movie to work.  
  
  
Back on the terrace, Clint glared at everyone, “You people are too mean to that poor girl.”  
  
Natasha looked at her best friend and said, “Oh come on you can’t tell you that you don’t want to lock them in a room until they admit how they feel.”  


“You should have seen the glare he shot my way when I hugged Mina today when we arrived,” Pietro said.  “I’m a dead man when he’s healed.”   


“You too?”  Sam asked. “I stuck my tongue out at him.”  Sam and Pietro high fived one another while Wanda smacked her brother.   


“We need to go out dancing,” Natasha said with a sly grin.  “We can kill two birds with one stone. Those men you capture said they had a base of operations in South Africa.  We go there, we go to a club. Mina’s a pretty good dancer, there’s no way he’ll pass  up an opportunity to be close to her like that.  Some of us will go to the club while the others comb the city to see if we can discover their hideout.”   


“As long as I do not have to put on another wig I am all for this plan,” Okoye said.   


With the idea set, they all began to go over the details.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I didn't post yesterday. This is an extra chapter as sort of a makeup for not updating. I'm still working on the new chapter of Siren's Lullaby, which I'm hoping to have completed soon.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

Bucky was healed a few days later and truthfully he was glad that he wouldn’t have Steve checking on him every five minutes.  He was starting to drive Bucky insane with his constant appearance, asking if he needed anything or if he was in any kind of pain.   However, now that he was healed it also meant that Mina wouldn’t be checking up on him either. So it was a win-lose situation for Bucky.   


He joined the others for breakfast and found that Mina was wedged in between Pietro and Sam, he frowned, but didn’t comment.  He was suddenly wishing it was just the two of them again. He heard Mina laugh at something Pietro said and he tensed up. Why did they all have to come?   


Bucky took a seat next to Steve and Mina looked over and gave him a smile before turning to Sam and telling him something in Italian.  Steve leaned over and whispered, “She’s been teaching everyone cuss words this morning.”   


Bucky snorted, “Of course she has.”  He had never actually heard her speak Italian, but he loved the way the words sounded as she spoke them.   


Sam repeated the words and Mina nodded her head and clapped.  “ _ Molto bene _ !”   


Sam looked over at Bucky, “Hey Buck, can you teach us how to cuss in Russian.”   


“No,” he said stoically. Bucky currently wasn’t feeling friendly toward Sam.  He knew that the other man knew how he felt about Mina, and was rubbing it in his face at how close she and he were.   


“You know Sam,” Natasha purred.  “If you wanted to curse in Russian all you had to do was ask.”  Natasha turned to Mina, “Do you know any dirty words?”   


Mina’s cheeks heated and she nodded her head, “Yes, but I’m not going to tell all of you.”  There were a couple of ‘aw come ons’ going around the room, but she was adamant about not telling them the dirty words.

After breakfast Natasha offered to do a workout with Mina and work on her fighting skills some.  Mina quickly agreed and went to change before finding Natasha in the gym.   


Steve looked over at Bucky, “Are we going to the gym or…?”  He trailed off waiting to see if he best friend would adlib for him, but he had a feeling the two of them would be heading for the gym.     


“Come on, we’re going to the gym,” Bucky grumbled as he got up from the table and headed in the direction Mina and Natasha had went.   


When they entered Bucky saw that Mina was in deep concentration mode as she fought Natasha.  It was like how she was with the Dora Milaje. Plus the other woman was a better fighter since she had been doing it longer, and she just didn’t want to take a shot to the head.   


Steve and Bucky headed for the corner of the room where they could see the sparring ring perfectly without disturbing the fight by being right there.   


The two continued to spar, Mina holding her own pretty well, but Natasha managed to get a shot in and Mina went down.  Natasha looked up at Bucky and asked, “Wanna take her for a spin?”   


Mina looked back to where Bucky was sitting, both of them were quiet.  She hadn’t even realized they had come in. “I’ll fight her,” a new voice called out. Sam walked in wearing a pair of shorts and a form-fitting shirt.  “That is if Mina thinks she can take me,” he smirked.   


Mina arched a brow, “I think I can take you, Sam.”   


Natasha swung out of the ring and walked over to where Steve and Bucky were.   


Sam and Mina circled one another for a few minutes before Mina swung at Sam, but he managed to block her with his arm.  She dodged his counter-attack and tried to kick his feet out from underneath him. He jumped up and shot forward, pulling her against his chest, her arms pinned to her sides.   


“What are you going to do now?”  He taunted her. Glancing over at Natasha, he saw she was grinning from ear to ear knowing exactly what he was trying to do.  His eyes then landed on Bucky who looked like he was ready to bolt from the room. All of a sudden Mina wasn’t there. Sam released her and jumped backward.  “What the hell?!”   


A moment later Sam was lying on his back staring up at the ceiling, Mina appeared above him with a triumphant smile on her face.  “You okay there Sam?”   


She held out her hand and helped him stand up.  “That was dirty,” he pointed a finger at her. “You did not disclose that you could turn invisible.”   


She grinned, “You never asked what my powers were, so I never told.”   


He shook his head, “Again?”   


Before she could agree Bucky swung into the ring, “I’ll fight her.”   


Mina turned around, “You sure?”  He nodded and Mina glanced back at Sam, “You don’t mind do you?”   


“Nah, but I want a rematch later,” he winked at her making her chuckle and shake her on.   


“You’re on Sam.” He took Bucky’s seat in the corner and Mina faced Bucky.  “Powers or no?”   


He smirked at her, “Thinking of becoming invisible on me?”   


“Maybe,” she matched his smirk.  “But I won’t if we bar powers being used.”   


“You can use your powers doll, I’m not afraid of the challenge.”   


“You’re on,” she said.   


The two of them got into position and Bucky came at her first, but she was quicker and managed to duck in time.  She turned invisible and went to the right, trying to circle around him, but he was too quick for her and his fingers brushed her arm as he tried to feel her out.  He looked toward the mat and saw little dips where she was standing. He lunged forward and trapped against his body and the ropes of the ring.   


She became visible again, staring up at him in utter shock.  He leaned in and whispered, “Found you, doll.”   


He heard her breath hitch and he pulled back to look at her.  He almost couldn’t see the turquoise in her eyes anymore. He backed away quickly, remembering they were not the only ones in the room and that he was trying very hard not to give into temptation.     


Someone began to clap and the two of them turned to see Natasha standing there clapping.  Mina shot her friend a glare while Bucky looked to Steve who was grinning like that damned Cheshire Cat.   


“Bravo, you two, highly entertaining,” Natasha said.  “Round two?”   


“No,” Bucky said quickly.  “I need to go.” He turned and swung out of the ring before disappearing out the door.   


Mina wanted to go after him to see what was wrong.  She was afraid he had strained himself too much, but Natasha came into the ring and asked her if she wanted to keep sparring.  Mina reluctantly agreed, but only because Steve went rushing after Bucky.  
  
  


Mina walked next door to Bucky’s room that evening after she had taken a shower and changed her clothes.  She had spent most of the day exercising and practicing her abilities with Wanda. It had been a little over a month since the two of them had trained together and it felt good to work with Wanda again. 

But she had had trouble focusing.  Her thoughts had been too wrapped up in thoughts of Bucky and what he was doing, and if he was okay.  She was worried after he had bolted from the room like he had.   


She knocked on the door and waited for him to open up.  When he did he stiffened a little at the sight of her. She gave him a shaky smile, “Hey, you okay?  I was worried about you today.”   


“I’m fine,” he replied, stepping aside to let her in.   


She felt the tension in her shoulders relax some.  “Good, I was worried that you had strained yourself too much when we were sparring earlier, and you had reinjured yourself or something.”   


“No,” he shook his head.  “I just remembered something that I had to do.”   


“Oh,” she took a seat on the edge of his bed as he paced in front of her.  She frowned at the sight of him so worked up like this. “Bucky is something wrong?” He was acting weird, well weirder than normal.   


He looked at her, pausing mid-step, “No, why?”   


“You just seem a bit off today that’s all.  I just wanted to make sure everything was all right.”   


He was quiet for a moment, “Mina, there’s something that I--”  He blew out a breath. “Nevermind,” he said quickly. “Just forget it.”   


She stood up and walked over to him, her hand lightly resting on his arm.  She was so close to him, and he wanted to wrap his arms around her and pull her in close, just to be closer to her for a little while.  But he resisted the urge. “What? Come on, you know you can tell me, I won’t judge.” She peered up at him with her beautiful eyes, and all he wanted to do was kiss her, but he knew he couldn’t.   


“Please leave,” he whispered.  “I want to be alone.”   


Mina took a step back, “Bu--”   


“Leave!”  He said a bit more harshly.  “I just want to be alone right now Mina, I don’t want you hovering over me.”   


She blinked back tears and straightened her spine, “Fine, I was just trying to help, but if I’m that much of a nuisance then I’ll just leave you alone.  Figure your shit out on your own.” She stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.   


Bucky sighed, he shouldn’t have been so harsh with her.  He had seen the hurt that had flashed in her eyes. She had been nothing but patient with him, and he had just snapped at her.  He rubbed his face with his hands and threw himself onto his bed. 

He wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t talk to him again.  
  


A few days went by and Mina didn’t speak to him.  Which killed Bucky. She wouldn’t even return his ‘good morning, doll’ with her sweet smile and shy ‘good morning’.  He missed how flustered she would get when he called her doll, but she had just closed herself off from him. Steve just shook his head and kept his mouth shut.  He knew something had gone wrong between the two of them, especially since Mina was taking it out on him in their sparring sessions.   


All the while Bucky had to watch her laugh at jokes Pietro told her, or how she and Sam would try to outdo one another when they trained.     


On the fourth day of Mina not talking to him, they all gathered for a meeting.  Natasha stood up and said, “I have a plan on how we can hopefully learn more about these people and what they want with the vibranium besides building a weapon of mass destruction.  I say we return to Cape Town, we split up into groups. Some of us go to a club while the others comb the city trying to find evidence of their whereabouts.”   


“A club?”  Mina asked, she furrowed her brow clearly not liking the plan already.  “Why a club?”   


“Because they may be bad guys, but people still like to have a good time, and if they’re drinking then they might be more willing to tell us things, spill something they’re not supposed to.”   


“It’s a good plan,” Steve said.  “And there’s logic behind it.”   


“Who will the teams be?”  Peter asked.   


“Okay if there’s a club involved then Peter can’t go,” Mina said.  He groaned. “Sorry kid, but you’re still underage and will definitely stand out.”   


“Sam, Pietro, Bucky, Steve, Wanda, Mina, and I will be the ones going to the club,” Natasha announced.  “T’Challa, Peter, Clint, Okoye, Shuri, and Ayo will be combing the streets for possible hideouts.”   


“Are you sure I should be going to a club?”  Mina asked. “I should be out there with the others.”   


“Nah-uh,” Natasha said.  “You have that siren song you can do to calm people down, if things escalate we need you there with us.”   


“Okay, but what about me?”  Bucky asked. “I’m pretty sure my metal arm is going to be a dead giveaway of who I am.”   


“Then wear long sleeves,” Natasha suggested.  “You’re coming with us buttercup.”   


“When do we leave?” Clint asked.   


“Saturday,” she replied.  “So two days from now.”   


“I have nothing to wear,” Mina said.  “I don’t do the whole club scene.”   


Wanda patted her friend’s arm, “Don’t worry, Nat and I have you covered.  We brought some dresses, you never know when they might come in handy.” That worried Mina a little, but she merely nodded.   


They discussed a few more things about the mission like what to do if anyone got into any trouble or if they discovered something.  The ones going to the club would bring their gear along just in case the others needed them.   
Shuri and Peter headed to her lab so that she could show him his new and improved suit.  He still didn’t know about it because Shuri had been tinkering with it even more since his arrival, but today was the day that she would reveal it to him.   


Mina wanted to go with the two of them, but she was dragged off by Wanda and Natasha after the meeting.  They led her to Natasha’s room where they showed her several options for her outfit on Saturday.   


She picked out the least revealing one, but it was still going to be really tight on her.  “What if I have to fight?” She looked between her two friends.   


“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine,” Natasha said.  “Just don’t do any fancy tricks if you can avoid it.”

“I’m not you Nat,” Mina argued.  “I don’t do the whole sexy act to draw people in and then take them down.  I should be wearing pants or something a little less short at least!”

Natasha shook her head, “We need to blend in and this how we’ll do it.  You’ll be fine, stop worrying so much.”

“And who knows maybe Bucky will like this little ensemble,” Wanda said with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

Mina frowned at the mention of Bucky, “Yeah well James and I aren’t on speaking terms right now.”

“Did the lovebirds have a fight?”  Natasha teased, but the look Mina shot her had her smile slipping from her face.  “What happened?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Mina said.  “I gotta go.” Natasha and Wanda didn’t try to stop her as she left the room, both of them sharing worried looks at one another.


	17. Chapter Sixteen

Clint invited Mina out so she could show him around Wakanda before the mission.  This shocked her, but she was pleased. She liked Clint and his no-nonsense attitude and how laid back he could be.  And she often wished they could spend more time together because he was easy to talk to. She could see why Natasha was best friends with him.   


They walked together through the streets and he looked at her, “What’s bothering you kid?”   


Mina wasn’t used to being the one called ‘kid’ but she liked the term of endearment.  She wondered if this was how Peter felt when she used the nickname with him. “A lot of things, actually,” she said truthfully.  “I’m worried about Saturday. I’m a bookworm, the wallflower, whatever you want to call my introverted self. I don’t do clubs or dancing or people for that matter.  Then to top it all off I haven’t talked to Bucky in four days.”   


“And why haven’t you talked to Bucky in four days?”  If he was curious his voice and face didn’t reveal it.   


She chewed on the inside of her cheek for a moment before responding.  “Well we were training the other day and after we fought he left kind of quickly.  I didn’t go after him, I waited until the end of the day and then I checked on him.  He seemed really troubled and he went to tell me something but stopped himself. I assured him that he could tell me and that I wouldn’t judge him.  He snapped at me and told me to stop hovering over him. So that’s what I’ve been doing, even when he speaks to me first.”   
Clint listened carefully, he was always a good listener.  “I’m sure he’s just stressed, and being shot was probably pretty traumatic for him, and he’s just working through that.”   


“Probably,” she said.  “I just got really mad because I thought we were friends and I just felt like he could have handled the situation a lot better than he did.”   


“You’re right, he could have handled it better, but remember we all have days where we just snap and we don’t mean too.  When we get back you should try talking to him again. Apologize for being distant, and just tell him how you felt and how you still feel.”   


“Thank you, Clint,” she said.  “I’ll do that.”   


They made their rounds around the city and their last stop was the outdoor food market that Bucky had taken her too during one of her first few days in Wakanda.  They ate on their way back to the palace, both of them quiet as they ate their food.   


“Good luck,” Clint said before breaking off to go do whatever it was that Clint did in his free time.   


Mina pulled out her map of the castle and saw that Bucky was currently alone in the library.  She was a little relieved that he was on neutral ground and hurried their before anyone else could walk in on them or stop her before she had gotten a chance to talk to him.   


He was sitting on one of the couches in the center of the room, a book perched on his lap.  He was actually asleep, soft snores emanating from him. She took a seat beside him and gently nudged him, “Bucky.”   


He snapped awake quickly at the sound of her voice.  “Doll?”   


She gave him a little smile, relieved that he was still using the nickname.  “Hi,” she said a bit awkwardly.   


“Hi,” he responded back, his eyes roving over her face trying to gauge her mood and if she had come to yell at him some more.  But her face was soft and she seemed almost nervous.   


“I, uh, wanted to apologize for the other day,” she started.  “I shouldn’t have gotten so mad and ignored you like I did.”   


“No, no you don’t have to apologize, doll.  It was my fault, I shouldn’t have snapped at you like I did.”  He reached over and laced his fingers through hers, he was hoping he wasn’t still asleep on the couch in the library.  Feeling the warmth from her hand made him feel calmer. “I was just stressed.”   


She squeezed his hand, “It’s okay Bucky, we all get stressed.”   


“Do you forgive me?”  He asked.   


“Only if you forgive me,” she said.   


The two of them smiled at each other.  “Are you nervous for tomorrow night?”   


“Yes,” she fidgeted in her seat.  “I don’t dance, I don’t do crowds,” she said honestly.  “They make me anxious.”   


“I’ll be right there with you,” he assured her.  “I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”   


“I know,” she moved a bit closer to him.  “And Bucky, whatever was bothering you the other night, just know that whenever you’re ready to tell me what it was that I’ll be here to listen.”   


“I know, and I will, one day.  But for right now this just isn’t something I can tell you.”   


They talked quietly for a few more minutes until Mina picked up one of the books Bucky had found and began reading it.  They sat there in companionable silence reading until it got dark and Mina couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer. And for a second time, Bucky picked her up and carried her back to her room.   
  


The next morning when Mina woke up in her bed she realized that Bucky had carried her to her room.  Then a lightbulb went off over her head and she realized the other time she had woken up confused in her room that she hadn’t walked there like Bucky had told her, instead he had carried her there.   


She couldn’t help the smile that lit up her face.  She buried her face in her hands and let out a delighted squeal like a school girl.  Oh, why did she have to fall asleep?   


She got up and dressed quickly, she was going to have some fun with Bucky.   


Once she was in the kitchen she discovered that he was in there with a few of the others.  As she walked by she squeezed his arm lightly and whispered, “I know what you did.” He looked down at her with wide eyes.  “Both times.” She arched an eyebrow, a smirk on her face, and she walked away quickly saying good morning to Wanda and Pietro.   


Bucky just stood there not moving for a good minute.  She had figured out that he had carried her to her room both times she had fallen asleep.  And what was up with that smirk? He felt a little dizzy and he gripped the counter just staring at his food.   


“You okay Buck?”  Steve’s voice brought Bucky out of his daze.   


“Yeah,” he responded, his eyes darted over to Mina who was acting like she wasn’t paying a bit of attention to him, but he could still see her smirk.   


She left shortly after that to go get ready with Wanda, and before she left the room she winked at him which only made his heart race even more.     
  


“I need your help,” Mina said as she looked at both Natasha and Wanda.  Her friends stood before her all ready to go for their evening. Mina had on her dress, it was completely black, her back exposed, and it left little to the imagination as it clung to her skin.  Her hair was still down and her face was bare of any makeup. “I-I want to impress Bucky tonight, maybe even confess how I feel.”   


“Ugh finally,” Natasha threw herself into one of Mina’s chairs.  “That’s one of the reasons we planned this whole outing so that you two idiots would finally see the light!”   


“Wait, what?!”  Mina was startled by Natasha’s admission.  “You mean this isn’t actually for recon?”   


“Technically it was a way to kill two birds with one stone,” Wanda said.  “Yes, we are actually doing recon tonight, but we wanted to push Bucky over the edge so that the big idiot would finally open up to you.  And tell you how he feels.”   


“So he does actually like me?”  Pieces of the puzzle started clicking into place.   


“God yes, Steve’s been trying to get him to confess for weeks now!  But he doesn’t think he’s good enough for you,” Natasha rolled her eyes.  “I call bullshit on that, he’s just scared.” She stood and walked over to Mina and steered her toward a chair and sat  her down.  “We’ll take care of everything.”   


They did her makeup first and then Wanda started to fuss over Mina’s hair.  “Wait, Bucky likes it when my hair is down.”   


“We know,” they both said at the same time.  “We’re doing this for a reason,” Wanda informed her.   


Once they were all done they headed toward the Quinjet they were taking to Cape Town.  Bucky froze when he saw Mina and her form-fitting dress, her back exposed. Several of the guys whistled.   


“Mina, you clean up nice,” Sam said.   


Pietro twirled her around, “I call first dance tonight.”   


She laughed, she was now in on the plan and knew that Sam and Pietro were going to try and make Bucky jealous enough that he’d want to dance with her.  “Thank you, you all clean up nicely too.”   


T’Challa walked over, “My Little Panther looks all grown up.”  He was in his Black Panther uniform, he and the others that weren’t going to the club looked so out of place among the others that were in their fancier club clothes.   


She smiled at him, “Don’t get used to it, as soon as the night is over this thing is coming off and my jeans are going back on.”  She glanced over at Bucky and saw he was trying to look anywhere but at her.

He was trying not to think about picking her up and hauling her back to her room while the others did the mission without them.  He glared at Steve who was grinning at Natasha who was grinning right back at him. They were up to something.

He gripped Steve’s arm, “What are you planning?”

“Nothing,” Steve said with a grin.

“You’re a horrible liar punk,” Bucky growled.

Steve patted Bucky on the back, “Just try to have some fun, yeah?”  With that he entered the Quinjet.   


When they reached Cape Town they parked close enough to the club in case the others had to come rushing back.  “Good luck,” they all said to one another as they disembarked on their own missions.   


Pietro and Sam had Mina wedged between them, Bucky glaring at their backs.  They both had their arms around her and she was making them laugh. “Tonight’s the night you finally tell her how you feel, or else Pietro or Sam might move in,” Steve whispered.   
Bucky kept quiet and when they got to the club they got a private booth toward the back.  Mina was pulled onto the dance floor by Natasha and Wanda, the three of them dancing closely together.  Natasha was clocking people that she thought looked too out of place for a place like this. Ones she thought looked like they were carrying weapons.  Wanda was prepared to take them all down at a moment’s notice.   


When the song changed Pietro began to dance with Mina, his body pressed close against his.  “He’s fuming right now,” he whispered in her ear, she could feel the grin on his lips.   


Mina didn’t dare look over at him even though everything in her was screaming at her to do so.  Next was Sam and she knew he would really send Bucky over the edge. Sam joked with her, making her laugh.  She saw Sam like a brother, and he really knew how to make her feel at ease.   


When the song changed she heard someone say, “Can I cut in?”   


Sam and Mina looked up to see Bucky standing there.  “Sure man. Save me another dance, Mina.” He gave her a conspiratorial wink as he walked away from her to where the others were on the edge of their seats watching to see what Bucky would do next.   


He pulled her so close that there wasn’t space left between them.  Her heart was racing and she was so sure he could feel it. “You’ve been driving me insane all night doll.”     


Her breath caught in her throat, she couldn’t keep it in, “Bucky, I know.  I know that you have feelings for me.”   


“Do you now?  Let me guess Natasha told you,” he assumed the spy would be the one to tell her.  He knew the game she was playing, that they all had been playing. It hit him halfway through the evening that they were doing this to finally get him to confess to her, to show him how idiotic he had been.   


“Yes,” Mina answered truthfully.  “And I like you too.”   


Bucky tugged her hair down, his fingers tangling in the long, black locks.  He seemed to relax as soon as he did so. “So much better,” he sighed.   


She gripped the lapels of his jacket, “Bucky, why did you lie and tell me I walked back to my room that night?”   


He leaned down so his forehead was resting on hers.  “Because I didn’t want you to know. Probably for the same reason you didn’t tell me that you had kissed my forehead that night in my recovery room.”  She stiffened slightly, “It’s okay doll, but I wanted to pull you down and kiss you for real. I spilled my guts to you that night. I told you how I felt, but you were asleep and didn’t hear a word.”   


Her dream came flooding back to her, the one where Bucky had confessed.  “I did,” she whispered. “I dreamed that you had confessed. I must have heard you and it translated into my dream.”   


“Hmm, if only you had known.”  She nodded and she felt him moving closer, she closed her eyes and tipped her head up a little knowing they were about to kiss.   


Their lips were so close to touching and then they both froze as they heard Peter’s voice,  _ “Guys, we found them.  Suit up, we need help.” _   


Both of them growled.  Mina wanted to smack Peter for ruining the moment  “Later doll,” Bucky promised, sending shivers down Mina’s spine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to say this: I'm currently wrapping up the original After Effects series, but I will be rewriting everything. It might seem weird to rewrite the one I'm currently writing now, but we've got a long way to go before I get to rewriting that one and something could change from then to now.   
> But I'm also working on a new one based on Bucky and Mina called Blood Moon. I've said this in the original version, but I don't know who's read that one and this one. It was originally going to be a different character, but I love these two characters too much and I can't write about Bucky with anyone else but Mina. I think that's all. I hope y'all are doing well and enjoying this!


	18. Chapter Seventeen

Mina and the others met Peter, Shuri, Clint, T’Challa, Ayo, and Okoye on the roof across from the building where they had found the people that were planning to attack Wakanda for their vibranium.  Most of the building was dark from what Mina could see. There were a few guards making rounds.

They all appeared to be carrying military grade weaponry which worried the team.   


“Is that an AR-15?”  Mina asked as she was passed a pair of binoculars to see into the building better.  There was nothing that would suggest that it was an office building like the others surrounding it.  Also, the men didn’t look to be government officials protecting the building from outside forces. They looked like mercenaries.      


“Yep and they have Berettas strapped to their sides,” Natasha confirmed.  “Probably carrying a couple of knives for good measure, maybe even grenades depending on if they want to destroy whatever’s inside if breached.”   


Mina handed the binoculars over to Bucky who had been glued to her side from the moment they had left the club.  “How are we getting in?” He asked.   


Mina crouched down and surveyed the building looking for the entrance and exit points, “There.”  She pointed to the roof where there was a hatch she could probably work it open with her powers. “But we’re not all going in. We can’t let them know we’re here. If we do then it could make them desperate.”  She looked up at him, she knew he wasn’t going to like her answer. “I’m going in alone.”   


“No,” he said.  “We go in as a team.”   


“You all can’t turn invisible and I’m pretty sure we don’t want these people to know we’re onto them.  Plus they might think you’re dead, we need to keep it that way.” She took his hand and looked at him, “I can do this Bucky.  You have to trust me.”   


Steve gripped her shoulder, “We’ll be right here, let us know if you need anything.”   


She nodded her head and looked back at the building.  “Just like  _ Mission Impossible _ ,” she mumbled under her breath.  Then she turned to Peter. “I need your webbing.”  Knowing exactly what she meant he shot his webbing over to the other side of the street and held on.  Before she went across she stood on her toes and kissed Bucky’s cheek, “I’ll be right back.”   


Natasha handed her a flash drive and told her to use her phone to take photos of anything that wouldn’t go on the flash drive.  Mina slowly shimmied her way across the webbing Peter had done for her, her body turning invisible.

Bucky felt the same sense of dread he had as the day they captured the three men headed to Shuri’s lab.  He didn’t like the fact that he could keep an eye on her and make sure she was all right at all times.   


When Mina reached the other side she let out a little, relieved breath, but knew that the hard part wasn’t over yet.  She had to use her magic to pry the hatch open. She made sure her turquoise flames were visible so that Bucky and the others knew where she was and that she had made it across to the other side safely.   


The hallway she landed in was dark, and she couldn’t hear anyone on this level.  She moved slowly hoping her eyes would adjust to the dimness, some light was entering the building from the street beyond, but not enough to light the hallway well.  She found the stairs and took them down a flight until she reached the floor below.   


This floor was brightly lit and had guards making rounds.  They were all silent and stoic as they moved with robot-like precision.  It unnerved her how well-trained people like them were. She slipped past the first guard careful not to make a sound or do anything to alert him of her presence.   


He paused as if he had heard her, but shook his head and kept moving.  Mina let out a little breath when he disappeared around the corner.   


None of the doors were labeled so it was a guessing game for Mina as she opened them and peeked inside.  Most of the rooms were empty, but she did find an office and began looking through it. 

She rifled through the drawers of the desk, but there were no papers or files in there.  The computer and filing cabinet was also a bust. No secret buttons or hidden panels in the walls either, and she double checked everything just to be sure.

Unfortunately, she came up empty.   


She moved down another flight of stairs and discovered a lab of some sort with a bank of computers against a far wall.  There was a red light causing the room to glow eerily. Mina looked around, but it appeared to be empty. 

She took her phone out and began taking photos before walking over to the computers and booting one up.   


Inserting the flash drive she began downloading the content on the computer hoping to find something good there.  Almost as soon as she was done alarms started to go off, and she realized that she had triggered a safeguard in the computer against people trying to download the files.   


She yanked the flash drive out and hurried into the hall.  “This way!” She heard someone shout.   


Both sides of the hallway were suddenly crowded with the guards.  She was trapped, there was no way she could make it through without alerting them of her presence, and to top it all off they were slowly moving toward the door she had just come out from.   


She whirled around to the windows and knew that this would definitely tell them where she was, and they would most certainly start shooting at her.  It was either be shot at or be captured. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath.   


Her powers flared up and she broke the window directly behind her.  She heard the stunned curses coming from the men and she was out the window.  She was unfortunately several stories up so she had to use her abilities to help her land.  She landed wrong on one of her ankles and yelped in pain.   


The men were still above her shouting, some were shooting, but the bullets hit her suit and bounced right off.  She had to thank Shuri later for the upgrade.   


She dashed down the street, still invisible.  The deserted street was quiet except for the sounds of guns shooting through the windows trying to find their target.  She was far enough away that the bullets were no longer bouncing off of her, but the next problem was them coming after her and possibly discovering the others.   


“Mina!”  She heard Pietro’s familiar voice, and she wanted to sob in relief.   


She ducked into an alley and became visible.  “Pietro!” She shouted and he appeared beside her.     


“What did you get yourself into this time?”  He asked with a smirk.   


“Just get me out of here,” she huffed as he zoomed off.  They were at the jet moments later, Pietro sitting her gently in one of the seats, Wanda telling Okoye to take off.   


Bucky was at her side instantly checking her over, when he got to her injured ankle she hissed in pain.  “Doll?”   


“Landed on it wrong when I jumped outta a window,” she informed him.  “It’s just a sprain, it’ll heal in a few days, nothing major.” She looked up at Shuri, “The suit saved me from a lot of bullets.  Thanks for the upgrade.”   


“Of course.  Did you get anything on them?”   


Mina pulled out the flash drive and handed it over.  “I triggered the alarms with a dummy file. I wasn’t paying attention, I just wanted out of there as quickly as possible before they figured out that I had broken in.”   


Bucky lifted her up and sat down in her seat with her resting on his lap.  He was just so relieved that she was okay. “You scared me,” he whispered. “I saw the window break and I just thought the worse.  Not being able to see you didn’t help.”   


She wrapped her arms around him breathing in the smell of his cologne, glad to be out of that situation.  “I had to get out somehow.”   


She heard him chuckle, “You definitely know how to make an exit, doll.”   


Mina smiled and stayed curled up against him, her eyes falling shut, her ankle throbbing slightly.  When they landed Bucky picked her up and started carrying her toward her room. Wanda promised to bring some medicine and bandages for her ankle.  “For once I was actually awake while you carried me,” she murmured as he laid her on top of her bed.   


“Barely,” he grinned at her as he worked to gently remove her shoes.  He could see that her ankle was slightly swollen, but nothing some rest and medicine wouldn’t fix.  “Doll do you think you can get up and change out of your suit? Maybe even shower?”   


She pushed herself up onto her elbows, “Maybe, if you help me into the bathroom.”  She stood and he helped her over to her dresser so she could grab something to wear and then into the bathroom where he shut the door behind her.   


He stood outside awkwardly.  He was trying to focus on anything but the sound of water running into the tub and the way Mina was humming.  He looked around the room trying to find something to draw his attention away from Mina. There were clothes from the morning strewn on the floor like she had gotten ready in a hurry.  Then there was a stack of DVDs from the library on the coffee table along with some snacks. He wondered what the movies were and how many of them she had already watched. 

Wanda knocked on the door and came in with a first aid kit.  “Where is she?”   


“Bathroom,” he responded as he took the kit from her.  “I figured she’d want to change and take a shower in peace before falling asleep.”   


“How is it?”  She leaned against the couch and crossed her arms over her chest.   


“It’s swollen, but nothing that won’t heal within a few days.  She just needs to rest it properly.”   


“Bucky,” he heard her call out.  “Can you help me?” She appeared in the doorway, her foot hovering over the ground.  “Hey, Wanda.”   


“Hey Mina, you feeling better?”   


“Much,” she responded.  “Now if I can just get into bed I’d be perfect.”  Bucky walked over and scooped her into his arms, “Whoa, I can still hobble over to the bed.”   


He kissed her temple, “Shh, just relax.”   


Wanda was definitely going to report back on this.  The others were kind of dying to know if Bucky was going to stay the night with her or not.  She said her goodnights and rushed off to tell the others what she had witnessed. 

Bucky shook his head, “She’s definitely going to go tell the others what’s going on.”

Mina snorted, “I sometimes think we’re in high school again with the amount of gossip that goes around.”  Bucky had to admit that she wasn’t wrong.   


Bucky handed Mina the medicine, and while she took that he wrapped her ankle and put a pillow under it.  “Thank you,” she told him once he was done.   


“You’re welcome.”  He sat beside her on the edge of her bed.  “I’m going to go take a shower and change.”   


“Are you coming back?”  She asked a bit shyly.   


“Only if you want me too,” he responded.   


She nodded, “I want you to.”  His heart skipped a beat, and he promised to be back as quickly as he could.     


When he returned and slipped into bed with her, she scooted closer to him and rested her head on his chest.  “Good night doll, try to get some sleep.”   


“You too Bucky,” she could feel how fast his heart was racing and she smiled as she shut her eyes and drifted off.   


Bucky laid awake for a little while longer watching her sleep.  He ran his fingers through her hair and she smiled, he wondered if she was having a good dream or was still conscious enough to know what he was doing.  He couldn’t really believe that he was here. He had tried so hard to avoid this, but he couldn’t stay away from her any longer.   


Seeing her dancing with Sam and Pietro had sent him over the edge.  He didn’t want to lose the chance to be with her and then have to watch her with another man.  And then that very morning when she admitted that she knew he had carried her to bed, that smirk she had sent his way.  She knew how he felt and what was the point of denying it to her?   


He didn’t want to lie to her, he didn’t want to hurt her.  So he vowed that he would give this a shot, he would see where this took them.  He trusted her, and he knew that she wouldn’t judge him for his past.   
Thoughts were already swirling about what he would do for their first date.  He wanted to do something special, and he knew just want to do.


	19. Chapter Eighteen

Waking up Mina discovered that Bucky was wrapped around her, his chest rising and falling softly.  She smiled and held him a bit tighter. “Bucky,” she said softly. “Wake up.”   


He groaned and rubbed his eyes, “What time is it?”  His voice was hoarse from sleep.   


Her heart fluttered in her chest.  She didn’t know if she could get used to waking up next to him like this.  If her heart would still have the same reaction every time. “Don’t know,” she responded.  “I just woke up.”    


Bucky rolled his head and looked at the digital clock on the bedside table.  “It’s ten,” he informed her.   


“Wow, we must have been more tired than we thought.”  She went to get up, but Bucky tightened his grip on her a little.  “Bucky,” she whined. “I have to eat and use the bathroom and get ready for the day.”   


“Nope, you’re staying right here with me,” he said as he placed a light kiss on her neck.  She couldn’t complain, she wanted to stay wrapped up in his arms and let him kiss her all over, but she had things she needed to do.   


“James,” she said, trying to be serious, but it came out as more of a breathy laugh.   


He kissed her neck again making her shiver.  “You only use my name when you’re frustrated or mad at me.”  Another light kiss, but this time he trailed his lips up to her jaw.     


She tried to keep her voice steady, “Yeah well you’re kissing me, and it’s distracting, and I have to go get ready.”   


Bucky went to respond, but there was a banging on Mina’s door.  “Rise and shine you two!” Sam’s voice called through the door. “Don’t make us come in there.”   


“I’m going to kill that man one day,” Bucky growled as he frowned.   


Mina took his moment of distraction and rolled out of bed, careful not to put too much pressure on her ankle.  “You’re not going to kill Sam,” she rolled her eyes. “You’re just jealous because of his relationship with Steve.”     


Bucky was behind her a moment later, his arms wrapped around her waist, tugging her up against his body.  He didn’t think he’d ever get used to this feeling. “I was also jealous of how you were dancing with him and Pietro last night,” he whispered in her ear.   


“Oh trust me, I know.  That was the plan. They were trying to get you to admit that you liked me.  Honestly, I was just going to tell you anyway, but I think the boys like riling you up too much.”  It was a past time to see who could rile Bucky up the quickest. Steve didn’t approve, but there was nothing he could do about it.   


She managed to untangle his arms from around her waist and walked into her bathroom, Bucky didn’t follow, he wasn’t sure if he should.  Mina peeked around the corner, “You can go change if you want, we can meet in the hall and head to breakfast together.”   


He nodded and left the room to go get changed as quickly as possible.  It took Mina longer since she had to go at a slower pace. But when she exited her room into the hall she found Bucky waiting patiently outside her door.  He held out his hand and she took it.   


When they reached the kitchen everyone turned to look at them with matching grins on their faces.  “Hey there’s the happy couple, did the two of you have fun last night?” Sam asked with a smirk.   


Steve smacked him upside the head, “Be nice.”   


Mina shook her head, “As if I’d tell you anything, Sam.”   


“Meanie,” he pouted.   


Shuri and Peter walked in their heads bent together in concentration as they quietly discussed something over a tablet.  They took a seat at the bar and continued to talk, ignoring everyone in the room. The others looked at one another in curiosity.   


Mina picked up a grape and tossed it at Peter’s head.  He looked up, startled when it caught him right between the eyes.  “Hey what was that for?” He frowned at her.   


“Would you like to share with the group what the two of you are so intently discussing?”  Mina arched an eyebrow.   


Shuri looked up from the tablet and said, “Peter and I have been going over the files that you managed to get from those people last night and it appears they are apart of an organization called Enclave.  It’s run by a group of scientists that the world believes are dead.”   


Tension settled over the others.  “Which scientists?” Natasha asked.   


“Maris Morlak, Carlo Zota, Wladyslav Shinsky, and Jerome Hamilton,” Shuri informed them.  “They have considerable assets. And it looks like their base of operations is on an island in the North Atlantic Ocean.”   


No one liked the sound of that.  “Did you find out what the weapon was that they’re trying to build with the vibranium?”  Steve asked.   


Shuri and Peter shook their heads.  “No, but we haven’t gone through all the files yet.  We’ve just mainly been seeing where their bases are and what the uses for each one are,” Peter said.   


“I’ll meet the two of you at the lab and we can sift through the files together,” Mina told them.   


“I’ll join you,” Bucky added.   


When Peter, Shuri, Bucky, and Mina arrived at the lab there were papers and notes everywhere.  Red string was connecting them all. Mina immediately realized that Peter had done this. She looked over the papers and tried to connect the dots, but she couldn’t quite decipher Peter’s thinking method.   


Shuri handed Bucky and Mina tablets and split the remaining files between the two of them while Shuri and Peter tried connecting more dots with string and paper.     


They worked in silence for the longest time.  Mina’s eyes skimming over the files and what had been written there.  She was coming up empty, and when she looked over to check on Bucky he had the same frustrated look he did.   


He set his tablet down and closed his eyes, running his fingers through his hair.  “Did you find anything?”   


She shook her head, “No.  Nothing worth sharing anyways.  I mainly just learned about their bases.”   


Voices drifted down from above and Steve appeared with T’Challa at his side.  Both of them paused when they saw the state of disarray that Shuri’s lab was in.  “Do I even want to know?” T’Challa questioned.   


“No,” they all chorused.   


Steve paused beside Bucky, “Did you at least find anything?”   


He shook his head, “Only about their bases located all over the world.  They seem to stay in the one up north, they have goons to do their dirty work for them.”   


“Maybe we should hit up those bases,” Peter suggested.  “Start with the smaller ones, see if we can discover anything from them, maybe draw these scientists out of their other facility and go from there.”   


“That could work,” Steve said.  “If we agitate them enough.” He turned to T’Challa, “But the only bad thing is they could turn their attention to Wakanda.”   


T’Challa was deep in thought for a moment.  “We’re in danger either way, but I would like to keep the heat off of my country if at all possible.”   


Steve looked at Mina and Bucky, “Let’s discuss this with the others, and I’ll call Tony to see what he thinks we should do.  We may be heading back to the compound.”   


Mina nodded her head, “All right.”  She looked at T’Challa, “If we leave I’m really going to miss it here.”   


“The offer still stands Little Panther, you may come back and train with the Dora Milaje and spend time with Shuri anytime you wish.”  He looked at Bucky, “And you are always welcome here with her.”   


Bucky and Mina followed Steve and T’Challa out of Shuri’s lab.  Peter wasn’t too happy that they could possibly be leaving Wakanda so soon after he had arrived, but Shuri told him that he could always visit when he had more free time.   


“Meet me on the roof of the palace at five,” Bucky whispered, a mischievous grin on his face.   


“What are you planning?”  Mina asked.   


“It’s a surprise,” Bucky told her.  “I have to move my plans up since it looks like we may be leaving here.  Just don’t come up there until five, okay?”   


“All right, all right, I promise that I won’t set foot up there until it’s time.”      


He kissed her cheek, “Great.”  He dashed off to get started with whatever it was that he was planning.   


Pietro appeared beside her, “So are you happy?”  He asked as they walked together through the halls.  Wanda was currently on the phone with Vision and Natasha was with Steve talking to Tony.   


“Very,” she responded.  “I’m glad that we confessed to one another.  Although it feels… I don’t know weird? Like it didn’t actually happen?  I haven’t really had time to process all this. We’ve been so busy with those files today that we barely talked.”   


“It will feel more normal once the craziness dies down,” he told her.  “Just give it time.”   


They headed to his room and popped in a movie.  They left the door open and let the others join in if they wanted.  When the clock struck four Mina got up to get ready for whatever Bucky had planned for the evening.   
She didn’t know what she should wear.  Natasha popped her head in, “Hey, I heard someone had a date tonight.”   


“I do,” she responded.  “But I’m not sure what to wear.  Bucky didn’t really tell me what he was planning.”   


“Wear the dress from last night,” she suggested.   


Mina’s brows furrowed, “Isn’t that a little too… I don’t know, fancy?”   


“Mina, he couldn’t take his eyes off of you and he barely got to see you in it.  Wear the dress.” Natasha found it and tossed it at her. Mina stepped into the bathroom and slipped it on.  When she came back Natasha had found some sandals that would go with it. Since her ankle was still out of commission she would be wearing flats.  “Thanks, Nat.”   


“Of course, do you want me to do your hair?”   


“Are you going to put it up again?”  Mina asked with a smile.   


Natasha shook her head, “No, I think Bucky would track me down if I put your hair up.  I’ll curl it for you that’s all.” While Natasha curled Mina’s hair, Mina worked on her makeup.  She didn’t put a lot on. She was never one that was obsessed with makeup anyway.   


“Thank you for your help, Nat,” Mina looked at her friend in the mirror.  “It means a lot.”   


“What are friends for?”  She squeezed Mina’s arms and exited the bathroom.  “Have fun tonight, make sure you don’t give the old man a heart attack!”   


Mina chuckled and headed out herself after doing one last check.  Her stomach was in knots and she took in a deep breath. She was hoping Bucky didn’t notice how nervous she was.  When the elevator doors closed behind  her, she slumped against the wall and took some steadying breaths as she was lifted higher and higher.   


The elevator slowed and came to a stop, the doors sliding open.  When she saw was Bucky had done she let out a little gasp. Stepping out she found that it was a garden paradise.  All around her flowers bloomed in the fading sunlight. She recognized tiger lilies, roses, hibiscus, gardenia, and wisteria, but there were some she didn’t know the names too.   Their fragrant scents wafting through the air. Bucky had also set up little candles, all of them lit and flickering in the breeze.   


In the center of the rooftop paradise there was a table set up filled with plates of food that he had gotten from the open air market.  Bucky stood at the table looking as nervous as she felt.   When she got closer he walked over and pulled her into his arms.  “So what do you think doll? Did I surprise you?”   


S he nodded, she was speechless.  Her hands curled into the fabric of his light blue dress shirt.  “It’s beautiful up here,” she whispered.   


“I thought we could eat and watch the sunset, followed by dancing.  Since we were so rudely interrupted last night.”   


“Poor Peter’s never going to live that down is he?”   


“Nope,” Bucky replied.  “I was so close to finally kissing you, and the kid had to go and ruin it.”   


She cupped his face with her hand, “I’m kind of glad he did.  At least our first kiss wasn’t in some club surrounded by a bunch of strangers.”   


He leaned into her touch, “Hmm, true.”  He pulled her towards the table and helped her into her seat and then took the seat across from her.  He told her the names of the dishes he had gotten for them and told her to take  whatever she wanted.   


The two of them sat there and enjoyed the meal, the sunset, and the conversation.  She finally told him about the checker incident of ‘09. “I can never beat my dad when we play checkers.  I don’t know how he does it, but every time I think I have him right where I want him, he still winds up beating me!  We were playing one day and I lost for the fourth time in a row, so I flipped the board. Checkers went everywhere and my mom tried not to laugh as I began cursing in Italian.”   


Bucky was laughing, “That must have been some sight doll, I’ve seen you riled up before, but never so angry that you would actually flip something and make a mess of things.”   


“You better hope you never see me that angry, I hear I’m quite scary.”   


“Why do you never use Italian when you’re around us?”  He asked.   


She shrugged, “My parents always told me it was rude to speak in another language around people who didn’t know it.  It just kind of stuck with me and I never use it anymore. Plus I was never good at it anyway. Dad would get so frustrated trying to teach me the ins and outs of it all, but gave up and let my mom take over.”   


“ _ Dovresti usare è di più _ ,” he told her.   


“You can speak Italian?”  She gasped. This was one of those hidden things that Bucky hadn’t shared with the others.   


“Only some, hell that was probably really bad,” he laughed.  “But if you ever want to use it around me, you are more than welcomed too.”   


She smiled at him, “ _ Grazie _ .”   


“Of course doll,” He took her hand and brushed his thumb over the back of her hand.   


They talked for a few more minutes and then as it began to get darker he stood up and turned on a little speaker.  A slow song Mina didn’t recognize started playing and Bucky pulled her to her feet.   


One of his arms was wrapped around her waist while the other held one of her hands.  They slowly swayed to the music and Mina rested her head on his chest. “Thank you for this Bucky.  Tonight was perfect.”   


“Anytime doll, I wanted to do something special especially if we weren’t going to be here much longer.”   


She looked up at him and said, “We can always come back.  I don’t think T’Challa would deny us entry if we asked.”   


“You’re right, he wouldn’t.  He likes you too much.”   


Mina cocked her head to the side, “I think T’Challa’s the only one besides Steve and Peter that you don’t get jealous of when I’m around them.”   


“Oh no, I get jealous with Steve.  Trust me. T’Challa is in a committed relationship so I’m not worried about him, and then Peter is jailbait.  Everyone else is fair game.”   


She grinned at him, “Don’t worry about the others.  Pietro knew I had a crush on you long before I did. Sam sees me as a little sister, and Steve would never risk angering his best friend.”  She looped her arms around his neck, 

“And you don’t need to be jealous, I’m quite happy with my current suitor. He’s quite the catch.”   


He laughed, she would never get tired of hearing it, or how his eyes crinkled at the corners.  He looked so carefree and that’s all she wanted for him. She didn’t want him to be weighed down by his past or dwell on all that he  did when HYDRA had control of his mind.  She wanted to keep this Bucky around, but she knew that he would have his bad days just like everyone else.   


“Yeah, I’m happy with my girl too.”  He dipped her. “She’s got spirit, and the best hair.”   


It was Mina’s turn to laugh, “What is it with you and my hair?”   


“It’s so soft doll, I love the way it feels.”  He grinned at her and brought her back up so they were vertical again.  “I also love your eyes and your laugh. Your inquisitive mind. You made it so hard not to spend time with you.”   


“Promise me that you’ll never shut me out,” she said in a more serious tone.  “No matter how hard something may be or how ashamed it may make you feel, please don’t shut me out.”   


“I promise,” he kissed her forehead.  “I trust you.”   


“Good, because I trust you too.”  She brought his head down and kissed him.  She couldn’t take it anymore, the smell of his cologne, the way the candles were casting a romantic glow over everything.  Having been thinking about that interruption the night before.   


Bucky kissed her back with fervor, her lips were just as soft as he had imagined they’d be.  Her body was pressed firmly against his, his hands digging into the fabric of her dress. She gently nipped his lower lip with her teeth and he sat her on the table.   


Her hands were hovering over the buttons of his shirt while his were in her hair.  They pulled apart, their lips swollen. Mina could barely see the blue in his eyes. Their breathing was heavy. He pushed some hair out of her face, his fingers brushing the smooth skin of her cheek.  “So glad we waited.”   


“Me too,” she said before he bent back down and captured her lips with his again.  “Bedroom,” she murmured in between kisses.   


He didn’t need to be told twice as he picked her up and carried her toward the elevator to take them down to her room.


	20. Chapter Nineteen

Bucky woke up before Mina, she was lying on her stomach with her back exposed.  Bucky propped himself up on his elbow and trailed his fingers down her back in lazy motions.  Mina groaned but didn’t move or wake up. Bucky bent down and kissed one of her shoulder blades.  He looked at her face and could see a small smile forming, he knew for sure that she was no longer asleep. “Stop pretending to be asleep,” he teased.   


She propped herself up and looked over at him.  Her hair was mussed and tangled, she had bruises scattered on her throat and chest.  He may have gotten a little too carried away last night. “I wasn’t pretending, I had just woken up FYI.”  She took one of her hands and took his hand in hers, she couldn't stop smiling at him.  Last night had been incredible and for a moment she thought she had dreamed the whole thing, but waking up to his lips gently pressing against her shoulder told her that it had not been a dream, that it had all happened.   


“Mmm-hm, I really believe that.”  He pecked her on the lips. “Did you sleep all right?”   


“I slept like a bump on a log,” she informed him.  “Someone tired me out last night.” His cheeks heated and she straddled his lap, locking her arms around his neck.  “It was fun.”   


He placed a kiss in the crook of her neck, “I’m sorry about all the bruises.  I think I went overboard.”   


She pointed out several she had made on him, “I think we both did.”  Their embarrassed laughter filled the room. “You know the others are going to tease us relentlessly about this right?”   


He had already thought of that, but he didn't really care.  He was happy, and he wasn't going to let his idiot friends ruin it for him.  “I don’t think they’d have it any other way.  I think the only one that won’t is Clint.”   


“Probably,” she replied.  “He seems least likely among them to actually tease us.”  She slipped off his lap and padded over to the bathroom. She could walk on her ankle with minimal pain.  “You coming James,” she called over her shoulder. Bucky sucked in a breath and chased after her.   


At breakfast, Pietro was the first to notice the hickeys scattered over their skin.  He kept quiet wanting to see how long it would take the others to notice them as well.  It took about five minutes, Peter was the one that drew everyone’s attention to the bruises.   


“Out!”  Mina shooed him away, horrified that her seventeen-year-old friend and colleague had seen the hickeys and knew what she and Bucky had done the evening before.  “Tell Tony we’re not recruiting kids anymore.”   


T’Challa came into the kitchen, noticed the bruises, and said nothing.  He turned to Steve, “What is the verdict? Are you all going to be heading back to New York?”   


“Tony wants us back at the compound.  We’ll do more research from there and contact you with any new leads and details,” Steve informed him.  “We leave tomorrow.”   


Mina was sad to be leaving, but she was a little glad she would be heading back home to New York.  She wanted to visit her parents and tell them all about Wakanda and the things she had seen and eaten while she was there.   
Steve gave everyone the day off to spend how they liked.  They all decided that it was best if they spent it together and traveled the city.  T’Challa joined them saying that he could put off his duties until later.   


As they walked through the city T’Challa pointed out buildings and landmarks and told them stories of his childhood here, and how he used to take Shuri around when she became old enough to travel past the palace grounds.   
They ate at the outdoor market one last time.  Bucky telling the vendor he had spoken to weeks before that he would be leaving tomorrow and that he would come back the first chance he got.  The man told him goodbye and wished him good luck on his journey.   


The evening came and Mina made dinner for them all with the help of Bucky.  Everyone was tired as they all clamored to bed after dinner. Wishing each other a good night’s rest and that they would see them in the morning.   
Mina collapsed onto the bed with a soft groan, “Good night, Bucky.”   


“Good night, doll,” he kissed her temple and pulled the covers up over both of them.   
  


Tony, Vision, Bruce, Stephen, and Scott greeted them.  Sam greeted Scott with his usual, “‘Sup Tic Tac?”, while the others greeted each other with hellos and familiar greetings.  They all headed indoors to their rooms to unpack and shower after their journey.   


Bucky arrived at Mina’s room and fell back onto her bed, he could hear the shower running and Mina singing softly in Italian.  He listened to her and closed his eyes just relaxing against her bed, inhaling her scent.   


“Jesus, Bucky!”  Mina jumped when she saw him lying on her bed with his eyes closed.  “You scared me.”   


He sat up and grinned sheepishly at her, “Sorry, I just didn’t want to interrupt the concert you were giving.”   


She bent down and kissed him, “I probably would have stopped if I knew you were in here.”  She clutched her towel a bit tighter and headed for her closet. Bucky watched her walk away, wishing she’d drop the towel.  She shut her closet door behind her and got dressed quickly in a pair of jeans and a sweater. It was cooler in New York than it was in Wakanda, Mina was already missing the heat.   


“Where are you planning on going doll?”  She hadn't told him of her plans to go visit her parents yet.   


“To see my parents now that I’m back.”  She stood in front of him and he rested his hands on her hips.  “I wanted to tell them about my visit to Wakanda.”   


“Are you going to tell them about me?”  He was a little worried about how her parents might feel about her being with him.   


She rested her hands on his shoulders and smiled down, “Is someone worried about how my parents will react to the news that I’m dating?”  He nodded. “Don’t worry Bucky, my parents will love you. But I don’t have to tell them yet. I was actually going to talk to you about that.  I know this is still new, very new. So I won’t do anything that you’re uncomfortable with.”   


“I don’t want you to keep something from them,” he told her.  “If you want to tell them you can, but I’ll leave that up to you.”   


“We’ll see how the evening goes,” she told him.  “If I think they’ll take the news well I’ll tell them, if not we can wait.”  The two of him headed for her car and he opened her door for. “Such a gentleman,” she said before he closed her door.  “I’ll let you know when I leave.”   


“See you later, doll.”  He shut her door and watched as she drove off.   


Mina arrived at her parents’ restaurant an hour later with a smile on her face.  Her mom came rushing out from behind the counter and hugged her daughter tightly.  “Ah, you’re home!” Alia Gaspari was taller than her daughter, but not by much and she sported the same turquoise eyes.  Sometimes Mina wondered if her mother had the same abilities she did, they just never manifested as hers had.   


Marcus Gaspari came out from the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her as well.  “You don’t know how happy I am to see you, Mina,” he squeezed her tightly before pulling her over to one of the booths.     


Mina waved at the waitstaff and the cooks in the kitchen when they peered out.  “How was Wakanda?” Her mother asked.   


“It was amazing Ma, T’Challa is so nice and I loved his sister, Shuri.  They even told me I could come back anytime I wished.” She told them about the open air market, Shuri’s lab, the library.  “I thought I had died and gone to heaven,” she told them.   


Her mother watched her daughter with interest, “Who is he?”   


Mina stared at her mother with a deer in the headlights look, “Who’s who?”   


“The boy you are seeing.  You have that same goofy grin on your face the day you came home from school after that boy you liked had asked you out.  Now spill.”   


“Ah Alia, leave her alone.  I’m sure there is no boy.” Marcus still liked to think of Mina as his little girl.   


“Look at how red she is, Marcus!  Of course she's seeing someone. Now tell me who is the lucky fellow?  Is he Wakandan?”   


Mina hadn’t planned on doing this, but she should have known that her mother would be able to tell something was different.  “His name is James Buchanan Barnes, and he works with me at the compound.”   


“Sergeant Barnes?  The one from the Smithsonian?”  Her father asked. Mina was relieved that he didn’t mention the fact that Bucky had once been the Winter Soldier.  She knew her parents knew that he had been brainwashed at one time, but she really didn’t want that to come up in the conversation now.   


Mina fidgeted in her seat, she was hoping that they didn’t mention the age difference as well.  “Yes,” she said a bit shyly.   


“Isn’t he a bit old for you?”  He grumbled.

Mina laughed, “Technically I guess he is, but he’s still thirty.  Being put in cryo so many times over the last seventy years or so slowed his aging process.  It’s just the same with Steve, they’re aging differently than the rest of us.”

“I don’t know how I feel about this,” Marcus shook his head.  “He’s too old for you.”

Alia rested a hand on her husband’s arm, “Marcus, Mina is right.  He ages differently, and we all know what he went through and what happened to Captain Rogers.  I’m sure he’s been a perfect gentleman.”

Mina nearly choked on her Coke as her mother said that.  Alia Gaspari sent her daughter a knowing look that had Mina’s cheeks heating.  “Can we change the subject?” She interjected. “I came to see you all and talk about the trip, not my dating life.”

Marcus went to begin fixing the pizzas for dinner.  Alia leaned in and began to whisper with her daughter, “So what is he like?  I know your father is a bit gruff about it, but I’m happy for you.”

“He’s so sweet, and he really cares about me.  I really like him, Ma.” Alia and Mina smiled at one another.  Alia was glad that her daughter had found someone that would take care of her, and that would treat her right.  “I want you all to meet him. Maybe you could join us for dinner one day this week. I’ll make sure it’s just us and Bucky, I don’t want the others to interfere.”

“That sounds lovely, and I’m sure your father will come around, but you are our only daughter, and it’s gonna take some getting used to.”

“I know, but try to ease his mind a little.  I know no one I’m ever with will good enough for him, but Bucky is different.  He’s not like my previous boyfriends. I can actually picture a future with him, and I want Dad to like him.”

Alia took her daughter’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, “He will, I promise.”

“Good,” Mina relaxed and a few minutes later Marcus returned with their pizzas.

Later that evening when Mina returned back to the compound she discovered Bucky laying on her bed, he had changed into his pajamas and was laying on top of her sheets fast asleep.  She smiled and began to undress, getting ready to take a shower and change herself.

Bucky heard the door to the bathroom close behind Mina.  The water came on and at first, he thought he heard her humming words to a song, but then the humming got louder and he realized she was singing.   He got up and moved closer to the door as he got closer he could hear her singing in Italian.  She was happy as the tune wasn’t sad or downtrodden. Dinner with her parents had gone well. That made him feel good, he knew how important they were to her.

He continued to listen until he heard the water shut off.  He rushed back over to the bed and laid down again. His eyes were open this time and he was greeted by Mina wrapped in a towel.  He smiled at her. “Hello, doll.”

She grinned back, “Hey, Buck.”  She moved to her closet and opened the door.  “How long have you been awake?”

“Long enough,” he responded as the door closed behind her.  "How did dinner go with your parents? ”

Mina reappeared wearing an oversized shirt and nothing else.  She moved over to the bed and got under the covers, Bucky following her example.  She gravitated toward him and he wrapped his arms around her, savoring the way she felt in his arms.  He didn't think he would ever get used to this feeling.  “Well they found out about us, my mother is too perceptive for her own good.  My dad wasn’t… thrilled, but he’ll come around. I invited them over for dinner one night so that they could meet you.”

Bucky became nervous, “They, uh, they want to meet me?”

Mina laughed, “Is this the first time you’re having to meet a girl’s parents since before the war?”

“Yes,” he answered.  “And it was just a nerve-wracking then too.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t let my big, bad parents hurt you.”  She patted his chest and he chuckled.

“I’m so glad I have you to protect me, doll.  I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“I’m sure you’d be fine without me.”  She wiggled out of his grip and slid under the covers.  “Now let’s get some rest because I need to convince the others to scram when my parents come over for dinner and you know they’re going to want to spy on us.”

She had a point.  Bucky knew the others would try to spy on them as they had dinner with her parents.  None of them really had privacy in the compound. Bucky didn’t mind though, as long as they didn’t disturb the really private moments.

Bucky fell asleep trying to decide how to ease Mina’s parents’ worries when he finally did meet them.


	21. Chapter Twenty

Two days later Mina’s parents arrived at the compound for dinner with Mina and Bucky.  Mina had bribed the others into leaving the compound and eating out at one of the restaurants nearby.  They had protested, but once Mina offered to pay for everything they had all quickly agreed.

She was now in the kitchen with Bucky.  He was helping her the best he could, but he stayed out of her way mostly.  He didn’t want to mess something up. She was already on edge, and he didn’t want to add to that.

“Ma says that Dad is in a good mood, they’re bringing a bottle of their favorite wine, and the desert.  I just have to make sure the stuffed shells are perfect. They’re Dad’s favorite.”

She was flitting around the room like a hummingbird.  “Mina, slow down. Things are going to work out.” Bucky grabbed her by the shoulders and made her stop for a second.  She looked at him with her eyes wide, her breathing heavy. He could see the anxiety written all over her face. “Mina, doll, please slow down for like two minutes.  I know this is a huge deal to you, and I’m nervous too, but we’ll get through this together.”

“I’m just… I want them to like you,” she rested her head on his chest.  “I’m afraid that they won’t approve.”

“I’m sure it’s not going to be nearly as bad as you think it’s going to be,” he told her.  “Your mom seemed thrilled at the prospect that you had found someone and that she didn’t mind the fact that it was me.”

“I’m just worried about Dad,” she pulled away from him and moved a bit more slowly over to where she had the sauce cooking.  “He’s stubborn like me, and I don’t want him to get an idea about us in his head and then judge our relationship before he gets to know you outside of what he’s heard in media.”

That’s what worried Bucky, that they would let his past define who he was now.  He knew he was no longer the Winter Soldier, and he knew that it wasn’t really him who did all those awful things in HYDRA’s name.  Sometimes it was still hard for him, sometimes it was the way people looked at him. He had noticed several times since officially becoming an Avenger.

Mina had never looked at him like that though.  She only saw the good, she believed in him. Sometimes he wondered why she was like that.  How she could put so much faith in him when he had done terrible things.

She had told him that what he did when he was being brainwashed by HYDRA wasn’t his fault.  He couldn’t control his actions, and that she would never judge him for something he did while under the influence of others.  

He watched her as she stared into the pot where her sauce was cooking.  She was lost in her own thoughts, her worries eating away at her. He walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist, and dropped a kiss onto her exposed neck.  “Your food is going to taste amazing I promise.”

She leaned her head back a little, her eyes still focused on her food.  She went to respond when the doorbell rang. “Shit, that’ll be them.”

“I’ll go get it, just stay here and finish the food.  I’ll take them to the dining room and then come back to help you with the rest of the food.”

“Okay,” she nodded, he could hear her heart beating erratically in her chest.  “Hey, Bucky wait!” She rushed over to him and pulled him down for a kiss. Bucky responded by pulling her up against him, one hand sliding into her hair.  When she pulled away she whispered, “For luck.”

He chuckled, “All right, let me go before they wonder what we’re up too.”  She blushed and waved him away so that she could finish up the food. He walked down the long hallways toward the front door.  When he opened it he saw Marcus and Alia Gaspari standing there patiently. Marcus was frowning slightly, but Alia was all smiles as she took in the appearance of the man in front of her.  Bucky smiled, “Mr. and Mrs. Gaspari, please come in.” He stepped aside and asked, “May I take your coats?”

Alia eagerly agreed and Bucky helped her out of it, and then took Marcus’s coat.  He put them in the hall closet and told them to follow him. “This place is quite large,” Alia remarked as she took in the surroundings.  She had been here a few times, but the size of it never ceased to amaze her.

Bucky smiled at her, “It took some getting used to, trust me.  I had a small home in Brooklyn with my parents, and then coming here was quite a culture shock if I’m being completely honest.”  He opened the door to the dining room. “Sit wherever you want. I’m gonna go help Mina with the food, we’ll be back in a moment.”  He flashed them one more smile before he ducked out the door and rushed back to the kitchen.

Mina was there putting the finishing touches on the plate.  She had them on one tray and the drinks on the other. She let out a relieved breath when Bucky entered the kitchen, “I thought you’d never show up!”

“Well I couldn’t exactly ditch your parents, now could I?”  He grabbed the tray with the plates. “Your mother seems happy, but your father has not said one word since he entered the building.”

“F.R.I.D.A.Y. are they talking?”  Mina asked.

“Yes, they seem to be speaking in Italian.  Don’t worry, they aren’t talking about either of you,” the AI assured them.

Both of them let out relieved sighs.  “Thanks, F.R.I.D.A.Y.,” Mina murmured as she headed for the kitchen door.

When they entered the dining room with the food Alia hopped up immediately to help them.  Marcus stood a bit slower and took the plate that Bucky handed him along with the drink that Mina handed over.  He murmured his thanks and sat back down. Alia glared at her husband but didn’t say anything.

Bucky and Mina shared a quick look before taking their seats across from her parents.  “How was the drive up here?” Mina asked as she became situated and made sure they had everything they needed.

“Fine,” Marcus responded.  “There was no traffic.”

“Where are the others?”  Alia asked. “I was so hoping to meet Captain America.”

“Mina practically shoved them out for the night,” Bucky grinned at Alia.  “She didn’t want them to spy on us, but knowing Stark they’re probably watching us from the restaurant they’re at.”

Mina shook her head, “We literally cannot have one moment of privacy in this place.  We’re surrounded by nosy people and spies. Nothing stays secret for long.”

They fell into silence as they began to eat and drink.  Bucky and Mina would glance at one another, not quite sure what to do or say.  Marcus watched his daughter and Bucky with interest. He still wasn’t sure how he felt about the two of them together like this.  “Isn’t this a little unprofessional? You all are coworkers.”

“Marcus,” Alia glared at her husband.  

Mina sat her fork down and crossed her arms across her chest.  Her mouth turned down into a frown. “It’s all right, Ma. And no it’s fine, we’re not like that here.  The others know and they don’t care as long as it doesn’t become a problem.”

“Well what if you’re out on a mission?  You could become distracted,” he argued back.

“Dad, please.  If this was going to be an issue than Tony would have said something to the two of us.  As long as he’s okay with this then we’re fine.”

Marcus looked over at Bucky, “Why should I trust you with the safety of my daughter?”

“Marcus!  That is enough,” Alia had put a hand on her husband’s shoulder now.  “I’m pretty sure he is more than qualified to keep Mina safe. There is nothing wrong with their relationship.  Now would you please behave?”

Bucky cleared his throat and everyone looked his way, “If I may?  Sir, your daughter is in capable hands. I would never do anything that would endanger her in any kind of way.  I just want what’s best for her. I do care about Mina a great deal, she’s intelligent, funny, beautiful, and she cares about her friends.  I just want what's best for her, same as you.”

Marcus was quiet for a long moment and then he looked at his daughter, “ _ Sei sicura _ ?”

Bucky looked at Mina, saw the determination in her eyes as she responded, “Yes Dad, I am.”

Marcus picked his utensils back up and began cutting into one of his shells, “These are very good, Mina.  Did you make them in an attempt to butter me up?” He sent his daughter a smile and everyone in the room seemed to relax.

After that conversation became easier.  Alia was interested in hearing about what it was like growing up in the forties and what Steve was like pre-serum.  Bucky recounted their tales as children and teenagers with a smile. “He was always getting into fights. He could, for the life of him, never leave anything alone.  He thought he was some kind of back-alley superhero. When he rescued me, I thought I had officially lost my mind. Here was the skinny kid from Brooklyn come to save me, but he most certainly wasn’t the kid that I had left back home before being shipped off to Europe.”

“Hmm, Mina used to have the biggest crush on you,” Alia recounted with a fond smile.

Mina let out a whine, “Ma!”

“No, no doll, let her speak,” Bucky grinned at her, and Mina knew she was going completely red.  “Continue Mrs. Gaspari, you were saying Mina had a huge crush on me.”

Alia giggled, “I remember when we went to the Smithsonian and there was the exhibit on Captain America.  They had that section dedicated to you. She thought you were so handsome, and that she bet you had the prettiest eyes.”  Alia looked at her daughter with a smirk on her face, “She just had to have everything Bucky Barnes related from the gift shop.”

Mina stood abruptly, “Here let me get the dishes.”  She began grabbing the dishes left and right and hurried out of the room.

Alia stood to go apologize to her daughter but Bucky held up his, “Let me.”  He hurried after Mina and he discovered her in the kitchen banging her head against a wall.  “Doll,” he drawled as he walked over to her. “Come here.”

“No,” she muttered.  “My mother is so embarrassing.” 

“Oh, I’m sure that if my ma was still around she would be telling you a thing or two about me as well.”  He pulled her into his arms. “She woulda loved you.”

“Yeah?”  Her voice was soft.

“Yeah, and so would Becca, I’m sure my whole family would have loved you.  I know Steve does, and so that means my family would have too.”

“Okay, but I get to go to Steve for embarrassing stories about you once this evening is over,” she said.

Bucky let out a long sigh, “Fine, it’s only fair.”

She pulled away and beamed up at him.  “Okay, let’s go get the rest of the evening over, I’m sure the others are ready to come home, and I’m sure my mom has plenty more stories to share with you before the evening is over.”

The two of them headed back into the dining room where they continued sipping on their drinks and Mina buried her head into Bucky’s shoulder any time her mother said anything remotely embarrassing about her daughter.  Bucky would jump in and share some of his own stories so that it was just Mina that was being embarrassed during the course of the evening.

Soon her parents were telling her that they needed to go and that they had had a lovely time with her and Bucky.  She felt relieved that they seemed okay with her and Bucky being together. She promised that they would come by for pizza soon and waved at them as they drove away.  She shot a text to the others to come back and then headed into the kitchen to clean up.

“You look like your mom,” he told her as he made his way into the kitchen after bringing the rest of the dishes in from the dining room.   
  
“Everyone says that,” she chuckled.  “Dad always said that it was good I looked like Ma because he was too ugly to have such a beautiful daughter.  Mom always smacks him in the back of the head and tells him that he had at least three other women chasing him way back when.”   
  
They curled up underneath the covers, “People say I look like my dad, or at least they did.”  This was the first time Bucky had brought up his parents in a while. “I never really saw it, but looking back on it now I guess I can.”   
  
“Have you visited their graves since coming back from the dead in a sense?”   
  
Bucky took in a deep breath, “Not yet, I haven’t been ready to face that yet since everything calmed down.”   
  
Mina ran her fingers through his hair, “If you ever want to go, and you want me to go with you, just say the word and I’m there.”   
  
“Thank you, Mina.”  He kissed the top of her head and helped her finish the dishes so the two of them could get some rest before the others got home and decided to pester them about how their evening had gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finished rewriting this last night and now I've started working on the rewrite for Siren Song. I'm not going to post this one every day. I'll probably alternate between posting Siren's Lullaby and After Effects. If you read my original version of After Effects then this chapter is really different than the one it's based on in the original.


	22. Chapter Twenty-One

Mina was tired the next morning when she woke up.  The evening had really taken it out of her. Bucky, on the other hand, was gone when she woke.  The only evidence that he had been there were the rumpled sheets on his side of the bed.

Slipping out of bed, she threw on some sweats and a t-shirt and headed down in search of food and coffee.  She rubbed at her still tired eyes as she pushed the door to the kitchen open and found that Steve was in there with his nose buried in the paper waiting for the coffee to finish brewing.

“Morning Steve,” Mina yawned as she made her way to the pantry.  He mumbled a good morning back, his eyes never leaving the paper.  She sighed when she discovered the cinnamon brown sugar Pop-Tarts were on the top shelf again.  

“Need some help?”  Steve asked when he noticed she was angrily staring up at the top shelf of the pantry.

“Please,” she said as she stepped out of the way.  He got the box down and handed it to her. “Thanks, Steve.”

“You’re welcome, how did last night go?”  He folded his paper over and rested it on the counter, leaving it for whoever else wanted to look at it.

“It went well, my mother thoroughly embarrassed me,” she popped the two tarts into the toaster and got to work on the rest of her breakfast.  “Told Bucky what a huge crush I had on him when I was a teenager.”

“Oh trust me, we know.”

Mina shook her head, “Stark pulled up the feed last night didn’t he?”

“He did, I told them that we should give you all your privacy, but I was about the only one that agreed to that.  We heard the story she told. And I also know I owe you some embarrassing Bucky stories as well.”

“That you do, but raincheck on those.  I want Bucky around when those stories are being told.”

“Just say when and where and I will tell you whatever you want to know,” Steve promised.

“Rogers, Gaspari, we need you right now,” Tony’s voice boomed over the intercom.  “T’Challa just called, something’s going down.” The two of them shot out of bed and hurried to the war room to see what was going on.

T’Challa’s face greeted Mina and Steve when they reached the war room located in the basement of the building.  Bucky and the others had already assembled there and Mina gravitated toward Bucky, taking his hand in hers. She was worried about what T’Challa was going to tell them.  

T’Challa didn’t look pleased, he also looked like he had gotten no sleep.  Mina knew that whatever it was that he had called for had to do with the men they had captured and interrogated.  “What happened?” Steve asked once everyone had gotten situated in the room.

“The men that we apprehended when Mina and Bucky were here managed to escape last night.  They used a serum hidden in a fake tooth to momentarily turn them into a super soldier like you and Bucky.”  Everyone in the room froze. “The effects only lasted them long enough to break free and escape Wakanda. We managed to track one of them down after he had been shot with one of our weapons.  He’s back in custody.”

“Do we need to come back?”  Bucky asked.

“No, we’re fine for now.  We can handle ourselves and anything else this group may throw at us. I wanted to alert you of the latest development, and warn you of what could happen.  These men, these scientists, may try to harm you.”

“We’ll be ready for them,” Tony said.  “If the serum doesn’t last long then they’ll be no match for us.”

Mina shook her head, “What if that was just an emergency dosage though, something they could use when the time was right to escape?  What if those men wanted to be captured by us?”

“Then we need to proceed with extreme caution,” Bucky said.  “They’re trying to recreate what HYDRA started. This won’t be a walk in the park, especially if these super soldiers are anything like the ones they created after me.”  
Mina gave Bucky’s hand a gentle squeeze.  “We won’t let that happen.” 

“I think we need to move up our timeline on when we want to hit their bases,” Natasha said.  “If this is just the beginning we need more information and how to best put an end to them before they get too out of control.  We don’t need them perfecting the super soldier serum so that it lasts longer than an escape attempt.”

“Where do we even begin?”  Mina asked. “They have bases scattered all over the globe, it could take us a year just to even cross off the ones we know about, not to mention all the ones that they could have hidden.  Then we need to factor in that by the time we take down one they could have already created a new base.”

“We start with the one that we know about here, the one that’s stateside,” Steve said.  “We’re here so it’s the logical choice. If there are any more bases that are stateside that we learn about then we hit those next and work our way to the ones on foreign soil.”

The others agreed with him.  T’Challa wished them luck and told him he would call if he managed to get any more information out of the man, or if something else happened.  Tony pulled up a map of the location that the base was in. It was located in the middle of nowhere Virginia surrounded by woods. There was only one road leading up it.

There were two exit points for the building and a free-standing garage.  Guards were on a constant guard shift circling the entire perimeter of the building. It was going to be hard getting past them, especially when the shift changes seemed to be well executed.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y. are there any weaknesses to this building?”  Tony asked as they continued to look over the floor plan and outside design.

“Not that I can find, there are barely any windows and only two doors that the guards and other workers can come in and out of.  That does not mean there couldn’t be an underground tunnel leading in and out in case of an attack or a hurried escape.”

Everyone turned to Scott, “Let me guess, you want me to go do recon to see if I can find a secret way in.”

“That’s right Tic Tac,” Sam said with a grin.  “You get to find our entry point.”

“Give me a few days, and I’ll get back to you.  In the meantime keep me in the loop if you find another way in.”  He turned and exited the war room to go pack for his solo mission.

Mina was still a little baffled by the men and their escape.  “Why not do it when we were all there? They could have taken us on, we wouldn’t have been expecting an attack.  We were sure that they were safely locked up in Wakandan custody.”

“Well the serum didn’t last long,” Steve said.  “Maybe the more physical energy they exert the less time they have at being super soldiers.  It could be a trial run to see how the serum holds up.”

“I don’t like this,” Wanda said, her eyes were glued to the map that they had been all studying moments before.  “Something just feels off.”

“I’m with Wanda,” Mina agreed.  “This just seems too easy.”

“Well it’s the best lead we’ve got so we’re going to follow through,” Tony said.  “I’m going to go prep Scott for his trip and tell him what to do if he gets into trouble while we’re not there.”

The others continued to look over the layout of the compound, still trying to figure out if they had missed something when they had all been looking it over.  But they still came up empty. Mina couldn’t help the sick feeling in her stomach that told her something was going to go wrong with this.

There were too many unknown variables.  This wasn’t like HYDRA or Thanos. The Enclave was a whole new ballgame for them.  They knew a little about who they were, but overall no real motives were known about them.

Bucky could tell Mina was worried by the way she looked over the map.  He couldn’t blame her because he was worried as well. This group seemed a little too much like HYDRA for his tastes.  He wondered if the super soldier serum was the only thing they were working on or if there was anything else they wanted as well.

Natasha left the room first, she growled at the map and turned on her heel and stormed away.  Wanda went next claiming she was getting a headache. Steve and Vision went to check on her. Sam, Pietro, Mina, and Bucky stayed for a little while longer, all of them just staring at the map not really seeing it.

Bucky shut the computers down much to the relief of the others and said that there was nothing else they could do until Scott returned from his solo mission.  He took Mina out for dinner that night, the both of them needing the distraction from the day's events and their worries about what was going to happen next.

A few people, mainly women, approached Bucky and asked for his autograph.  He smiled and said sure, even taking a few pictures. Mina sat back and watched him with the fans, her smile was small as she watched how his face lit up.  He needed this, and so did she. It was nice to get away from the compound for an hour or two and just be among other people that weren’t superheroes.

The coming days weren’t going to be easy for any of them, and Mina wasn’t sure how she knew, but she was convinced their worlds were about to be flipped upside down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are only three chapters left and then I'll start working on the re-write for Siren Song.


	23. Chapter Twenty-Two

Three days later Scott messaged them saying that he had found a tunnel that led into the inner part of the compound.  “It doesn’t look like it’s been used in some time, so they probably only use it for emergencies,” he told them over video message.  “But it’s well guarded, both inside and out. The guards are hidden on the outside and then of course two on the inside.”   


They all looked to Tony to see what he was going to say.  “We leave in two hours, suit up and meet at the Quinjet. I want to get this over with and find out what these people want, especially what this weapon is that they’re creating.”   


Everyone broke off to their rooms to get ready for the mission.  Mina and Bucky had to split up, most of Bucky’s gear was still in his old room.  Mina opened her door with shaky fingers and headed straight to her closet to the case where she kept the suit that Shuri had made for her.  

Slipping it on she was reminded of the day she took on the people in South Africa right before they returned to New York.  She remembered the sounds of the bullets, and how some had whizzed by her. She wondered what these men would be like and if they would be anything like the ones at the base in South Africa.  

She finished dressing and stepped outside her room and discovered Bucky lounging against the wall waiting for her.  He made sure she was ready to go before the two of them headed to the Quinjet together. 

Tony, Steve, and Natasha were all there and waiting.  Natasha was looking over her own weapons making sure nothing would go wrong with them.  Steve was already in one of the pilot seats with Tony beside him, the two of them waiting for the others so they could leave. 

Pietro showed up next along with Vision and Wanda.  They huddled into the Quinjet and went to meet Scott a few miles away from the tunnel’s entrance.  

Mina and Wanda would go in first and distract the guards so that the large group wouldn’t attract too much attention right off the bat.  Scott had assured them that there were no scanners that far out from the main base, it was just the guards standing watch in case anyone stumbled upon the secret entrance.   


“I’ll calm them down and you slip into their minds,” Mina said as she and Wanda moved through the undergrowth and the trees.  Their footsteps were light, both of them trying not to snap twigs or disturb the leaves too much. “Piece of cake.”   


The two of them stopped when they saw the two guards stationed in a small clearing.  There was nothing remarkable about the area but they knew the entrance to the tunnel had to be there somewhere.  “Scott, when was the last shift change?” Wanda whispered into her earpiece. They watched as the guards scanned the horizon, the two women hadn’t been spotted which eased Mina’s mind a little.   


“Thirty minutes ago, there’s still plenty of time before shift changes,” came his response.   


“Let’s go,” Wanda whispered.   


The two of them stepped into the small clearing, the guards suddenly on high alert.  Mina gave them a smile, “Lower the guns boys, we’re not going to hurt you.” Power rolled off of Mina in waves as Wanda slowly rounded on the first man, her eyes glowing an eerie red, her hands matched her eyes as she slipped into the mind of the first guard.  “We’re just a little lost.” The first man made a grunting noise and as the second one turned to look at him Mina was on him in a second forcing him to look at her. “Pay attention to me, soldier, your friend is fine.”   


Wanda came up behind the man that Mina was distracting and worked her magic on him.  “We’re clear,” Mina told the others once the man was down.   


She stepped away from the man, a glassy look in his eyes, she wondered what Wanda was making them see.  She and Wanda were both shaking slightly, the adrenaline pumping through their veins. Mina jumped when she felt a hand on the small of her back.  She looked up and saw Bucky looking down at her worriedly. “You okay?” He whispered.   


“I’m fine,” she assured him.   


Tony pried the door open and Natasha hopped down first.  “Clear,” she hollered up at them. The others followed suit and soon they were all enclosed in the dark tunnel.  “Mina, some light please.” Her hand flared with the turquoise flames, “Thank you.” She nodded and led the way down the tunnel until they reached the door where Scott was waiting for them.   


“‘Bout time you all showed up,” he joked.   


“How are we getting through without alerting the guards on the other side?”  Clint asked.   


“Easy, I already took them out,” Scott informed them.  “Hid them in the supply closet, no one’s noticed their missing yet.”   


Mina pushed open the door and looked down the hallway.  It was empty, the whole building seemed too quiet. She figured it would have been nosier, and that there would have been more activity.  She motioned for the others to come out. They split into two groups and began their search for anything useful.   


The base was small, but it was a labyrinth of hallways and doors.  At one point a door opened and before the man knew what was happening Mina knocked him out and dragged him back into the room he had come out of.   
Inside she discovered a lab.  There were filing cabinets and computers scattered throughout the room.  A doctor’s work table in the center. She wondered if this was where they conducted their experiments with the serum, or if this was where they inserted the fake teeth.  “Search the files,” she instructed. “See what kind of experiments they’re doing here.”   


Bucky, Steve, Sam, and Pietro all began thumbing through the files.  Most of them looked like they were files on all the failed super soldier serums.  They had been trying to perfect it for a while.   


“This has got to be the base where they keep all their failed experiments,” Sam said.  “Every file I’ve come across from human experimentation to weapons has been a failure.”   


Mina walked over to the table, “Then why would this be here?”  She looked at the others. “The guards here must all have the serum as well.  A doctor must put the tooth or teeth in with the serum. It makes sense so that the men don’t have to go from one base to the next unless absolutely necessary.”   


“Guys,” Natasha’s voice filled their ears.  “They have files on Mina. They’ve been watching her since before the battle of New York.”   


Everyone in the room turned to look at Mina.  She stood frozen to the spot, they had files on her?  Her chest began to feel tight, “But why? I didn’t even know about my powers before the battle.”   


“Grab the files,” Steve informed Natasha.  “We can figure that mystery out later.”   


Mina felt like she was going to be sick, and Bucky was beside her in an instant.  She gripped his suit trying desperately to stay on her feet. “How could they have known about me?”   


“I don’t know doll, but we’ll figure it out,” he assured her.  He was worried about what they wanted with Mina, and how they knew about her powers when her own parents didn’t even know she would manifest one day.   


“Hello, Avengers,” a thickly accented voice said over the intercoms.  Everyone froze. “Thank you all for joining us. Especially the two original super soldiers.  So nice to finally meet you, Mr. Rogers and Mr. Barnes. And Miss Gaspari, it’s been too long.”   


“Who-who are you?”  Her voice shook, her palms began to sweat and her legs wobbled a little bit.   


“Your creator, Wladyslav Shinsky.  Of course, I don’t blame you for not remembering me, you were just a little baby when I began experimentation on you.  In fact, you were still in your mother’s womb.”   


Mina’s breathing became ragged, and she pressed her palms onto the table in front of her to keep her upright.  “What?” She wasn’t sure the voice, this Wladslav, would have even heard her.   


“Yes, I was the doctor that looked over you while your mother was pregnant.  She came to me because she didn’t think you were going to survive, all the doctors had told her so.  And I needed a baby that I could experiment on, that could possibly die anyway. A healthy baby dying?  That would raise too many questions. I made you stronger, I gave you your abilities. Wonderful aren’t they my Siren Song?  You haven’t even reached your true potential. Able to charm anyone, take over the world. Come home to me, my Siren Song. Your abilities are wasted with these heroes.  I can show you a whole other side to your abilities.”   
Mina couldn’t breathe.  “Bucky,” she whimpered.   


“I’m right here,” he whispered against her ear.  He wanted to rip Wladslav’s heart right out of his chest.  “I won’t let them take you.”   


“Really Winter Soldier?  Do you really believe that you can protect her?”  There was chuckling. “Be my guest, but she will only be your downfall.  Oh, how easily you feel for her. If someone as cold-hearted as you could fall so easily then she’s even better than I thought she would be.”   


“Shut up!”  Mina screamed.   


“You care deeply for him don’t you, my Siren Song?”  There was a sigh, “I always knew there could be downsides to this, but don’t worry once you are back with me my darling, I will wipe James Buchanan Barnes from your mind.”   


“I would rather die than be your puppet,” she spat.   


“I’m afraid I can’t let that happen.  My men have orders to take you alive. Your friends, however, are to be shot on sight.”   


On the other side of the door the others could hear the sounds of firefighting begin.  Cries of pain rang out as bullets connected to their intended targets. “We need to get out of here,” Steve said. He turned to Pietro. “Get Mina as far away as possible.  Don’t stop and don’t come back.”   


“What?  No!” She shouted.  “I need to stay here and help you fight, you need me.”   


“No,” Bucky said, though it pained him.  “They want you, and right now the best thing to do is get you as far away as we can.”  He leaned down and kissed her. He rested his forehead on hers, “I’ll come to get you when this is all over, doll.”   


Pietro picked Mina up, pulling her away from Bucky.  “Pietro! Put me down!” He didn’t listen and a moment later he disappeared out of the room.   


Bucky gripped his gun a little tighter.  “Let’s go, the others need us.”


	24. Chapter Twenty-Three

As soon as Pietro stopped running Mina tumbled out of his arms and pushed him away.  “How could you?!” She screamed at him. “They needed our help!”   


A pained look passed over Pietro's face.  He hated leaving his friends behind just as much as she did, but Steve was right, Mina needed to be kept safe since the Enclave wanted her.  “Mina, please. They were right, that Wladyslav guy clearly wanted you. You were a priority, trust the others. They can make it out. Bucky will come back for you.”   


“Our friends need our help!  Your own sister is back there!”  She was hoping that she could trigger something in him to get him to take her back, but her attempt failed.   


“I know!”  He yelled at her.  She was surprised at the intensity in his voice.  He took a breath and composed himself, “I know that Mina, and I’m worried about all of them just the same as you are.  But if what he says is true then you could be the weapon that they were working on. Why they wanted to steal the vibranium.  He was right when he said we don’t know about your abilities, what your potential is. But if he can brainwash you and make those powers emerge then that’s not going to be good for anyone.  Do you think we all would want to hunt you down and possibly have to kill you if things went wrong?”   


Mina fell to her knees and began to sob.  “I don’t know what to do.” Pietro came to kneel in front of her.  “Maybe I should just leave and protect everyone else from me. I could go to Wakanda and hide out there like Bucky did.  T’Challa would help protect me.”   


Pietro rested his hands on her shoulders, “Do you really think running from your problems is the best solution?”   


She closed her eyes and shook her head, “No.”   


The two of them lapsed into silence waiting for any signs that their friends were all right, that they had all made it out of their alive and unharmed.   


“Pietro?  Mina?” Steve’s voice came over their communication devices.  “Are you all there?”   


“Steve?”  Mina’s voice broke.  “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”   


“No, we’re fine, some of us just need a little medical attention, nothing serious though.  We managed to get out of there. They blew the building up. We managed to salvage some of the files on you, but some were lost.  Knowing these scientists though they probably have backups.”   


“How’s Bucky?”  Her voice quivered a little.     


“He’s on his way to your location now.  We’ll meet up in the city twenty miles west of where you are.  Just hang in there Mina.” Then Steve’s voice disappeared.   


Bucky arrived an hour later and Mina couldn’t have been more relieved.  There was a cut below his right eye, but it had already started to heal, and he was breathing funny, probably from a broken rib or two.  He looked relieved when he saw Mina sitting on the ground unharmed. She rushed over to him and started asking him all kinds of questions.   


“Not right now doll, wait until we’re back on the Quinjet.”  Mina helped support Bucky along with Pietro. She scolded him for not going with the others and just telling her where to go, but he insisted that he was all right, just a little tired from all the fighting.   


They reached the Quinjet unscathed and Mina looked over Bucky’s wounds as they traveled back to the compound.  “You should have sent Steve,” she said as she cleaned some of the blood off his suit. It wasn’t his and she wondered who was the unlucky bastard that had decided to tangle with the former Winter Soldier.   


“I told you that I would come and get you,” he told her.  “You know, you’re worse than Steve.” She poked him in the ribs, “Doll!  Ow!”   


“You’re injured James Buchanan Barnes, your health is important.”  She frowned at him as she continued to wipe away the blood. “And guess what?  You get to sleep in your own room tonight. By. Yourself.”   


“Doll,” he complained.   


“No,” she said sternly.  “You’re hurt and need your rest.  I’ve got things I need to do anyway.”  She thought about the files that the others had gotten for her, that were sitting just a few feet away.  “I’ve got some heavy reading to do.”   


Bucky took her hand, “All right, but try not to stress too much over this.  And don’t let what that man said get to you. You’re stronger than that, and they won’t be able to get to you.  If they even tried they’d have to go through everyone here.”   


Mina knew what he said was true.  They all would be there for her. They would help protect her no matter what.  As they reached the base Mina helped Bucky back to his room and got him cleaned up better before making sure he had everything he needed.   


“Go, I’ll be fine, if I need something I’ll have F.R.I.D.A.Y. contact you.”  He kissed her knuckles. “I expect a full report on your findings tomorrow though.”   


“Yes Sergeant Barnes,” she said with a sultry smile.   


He grinned at her, “Go before I decide to lock you in here with me.”   


She bent down and kissed his forehead, “I’ll see you in the morning Bucky.”   


“That’s Sergeant Barnes to you miss,” he said in a mock serious tone.   


She shook her head and closed the door behind her.  When she reached the common room she found that Steve and Wanda were waiting for her there with the boxes.  “We’re here to help,” Wanda told her. “And we’re here for moral support.”   


Mina was grateful for their support, “All right, let’s get to it then.”  She took a seat between them and opened the lid for the first box.   
  


**Date: August 16th, 1994** **  
** **  
** **Subject: Unborn infant of Alia and Marcus Gaspari** **  
** **  
** **Notes:  Subject seems to be doing well with the serum we have been injecting her with.  She hasn’t died off like the others yet. There is something strange about this child, while she is responding differently there is something about her that the other subjects didn’t have.**

**HYDRA’s notes on their version of the super soldier serum have been helpful as we continue to work on our own version.  I think the batch we’ve used on this fetus is the winner, but we will have to wait and see as the child begins to grow.**

**The fetus’s vital signs are normal for a baby in the third trimester.  The parents are thanking me profusely for saving their little girl’s life.  If only they knew what kind of plans we have or her in the future.** **  
** **  
** **Mrs. Gaspari will be going into labor within the next month.  From there she will take her child home, and we will monitor from a safe distance.** **  
** **  
****  
****Date: November 10th, 1997** **  
** **  
** **Subject: Mina Danae Gaspari** **  
** **  
** **Notes: Mina is now three years old, and she is growing well for a baby that was so sickly while in her mother’s womb.  The serum has really improved her, probably much like it did with Steven Rogers.**

 **Her powers have not made an appearance yet, although she appears to be a docile child.  We will continue to watch her as she grows to see if any signs appear as she grows older.** **  
** **  
** **Her parents seemed enthralled with her, although that could be for the fact that Alia almost had a miscarriage with her.** **  
** **  
** **Will continue to monitor as the child grows older.** **  
** **  
****  
****Date: April 24th, 2002** **  
** **  
** **Subject: Mina Gaspari** **  
** **  
** **Notes:  She is starting to show signs of her Siren Call.  Her ability to calm others and make them see things her way has started to appear more and more.  People fall in love with her no matter who they are, no one is immune at this stage.** **  
** **  
** **Most people have chalked it up to the fact that she must be a very agreeable child.** **  
** **  
** **No other signs of the abilities she should have.  She is only eight though.** **  
** **  
****  
****Date: May 4th, 2012** **  
** **  
** **Subject: Mina Gaspari** **  
** **  
** **Notes:  Her other powers have emerged.  There was an alien invasion today, and while the Avengers fought Mina managed to protect innocent bystanders with her powers.** **  
** **  
** **She seemed surprised to see them.  We will see what she does with the knowledge that she is gifted now.** **  
**  
Mina closed the file she was reading and tossed it back onto the box.  She hung her head and ran a hand through her hair. It bothered her to know that she almost hadn’t been born, and that fact that she was here was because of the serum they had injected her with.  She owed this man her life and that made her feel sick. It also bothered her that she wouldn’t have her abilities even if she had been born.  


Steve and Wanda looked at one another, not quite sure what to say to her.  Their files hadn’t been much better, and they could only imagine how she must be feeling.  When they were both experimented on they had agreed to it, but Mina hadn’t been given the choice.  They weren’t sure how to make this better. “What am I even going to be capable of?”   


“We don’t know,” Wanda said softly.  “But we can figure it out. We’ll train more.  I’ll help you understand your powers more.”   


“We’ll all help,” Steve said.  “We’re not going to let you go through this alone.”   


Mina stood up, “I need to be alone.”  Steve and Wanda let her go knowing that the best thing for her right now was to just let her be and let her process this all on her own.   


Mina shut herself up in her room for the rest of the evening just thinking everything she had learned over and trying to come to terms with it.   
  


In the morning she walked down to breakfast and discovered the entire team assembled, Bucky included.  They were all talking quietly amongst themselves, and from the way they shut up when she entered the room, Mina knew they were talking about her.   “Please don’t stop on my account, what are you all talking about?” There was a bitter undertone to her voice. “Don’t want me on the team anymore because I’m a liability?”   


“Mina no,” Natasha said, her voice soft.  “We’re just trying to figure out how to best protect you.”   


“Maybe you should think about how to protect yourselves,” she shot back.  “Seeing as how I’m this great weapon they want to use to take down the world.”   


“Hey,” Bucky said.  “Calm down, we’re still your friends, we’re still here for you.  None of this changes a thing.”   


“Maybe it should.  Maybe I should go into hiding while the rest of you figure out how to stop this.”   


“We’re not going to put you into hiding,” Tony said with a shake of his head.  “That is ridiculous.”   


“We’re a team,” Pietro said.  “We protect our own. Even when the members can be turned into weapons of mass destruction,” he grinned at her.   


“You and Barnes are quite the pair,” Sam joked.  “Two people that can be brainwashed to wipe out the world, it’s like a match made in heaven.”  Mina used her powers to toss an apple at his head, but he dodged it, “You missed.”   


The brought a little smile to her face and she stepped further into the room.  “So what do we do now?”   


“We work to strengthening your abilities,” Steve said.  “The stronger you are the better you will be at staying out of their hands.  The stronger you are the less likely it will be that they can use you as a weapon.”   


“T’Challa is sending Shuri to help.  She can monitor your powers and maybe figure out what kind of serum runs through your veins,” Bucky said.  “Both of them are worried about you, and want to help.”   


“Good,” she said with a nod.  She was already feeling a little better now that a plan was actually beginning to form.  “This is good.”   


“Our main priority right now is keeping you safe,” Tony continued.  “And getting you better trained. All other things can be put on the back burner.  And while you train we’ll see what we can do about these scientists.”   


Bucky pulled Mina onto his lap and rested his chin on her shoulder.  “What if I’m captured?”   


“Not going to happen,” Bucky said.  “That’s not even an option.”   


Mina rolled her eyes, “Of course it’s an option Bucky.  Things can go wrong, plans can be changed drastically. And if they’re desperate enough to have me then they’ll find a way to get me back.”   


“We haven’t thought that far ahead,” Steve admitted.  “But don’t worry we’ll think of something.”   


“Just don’t let them brainwash me,” she told them.  “If they do I’m going to be super mad at y’all, and the first thing I’ll do when I’m unbrainwashed is kick all your asses.”   


The rest of the team chuckled.  “Don’t worry we’ve been through it once with Barnes, we know how to handle brainwashed people,” Natasha assured her.   


The others continued to talk about what they were going to do when Bucky pulled Mina from the room.  She didn’t know where he was taking her until the two of them reached the roof. It felt nice to be outside and in the fresh air.   


“I know it’s a little hard not to worry about what could happen, for so long I was scared of what could happen if HYDRA found me again and turned me back into the Winter Soldier.  But you can’t think like that. You can’t let this fear you have cripple you, you got it?” She nodded her head. “You’re a strong person Mina, don’t ever lose that. Even if you're captured, hold onto that strength and don’t let them break you.”   


Tears sprung up in her eyes, “Bucky, I’m scared.  I wasn’t scared when I first learned about my powers.  I figured they were a genetic mutation, but now that I know I was experimented on I’m afraid of what I might be able to do.”   


Bucky pulled her into his arms, “Don’t let that fear consume you.  It will only make things worse. And just know I will be here with you a hundred percent of the way.”


	25. Epilogue

In the North Atlantic Ocean, four scientists stood together looking over the footage from their Virginia base.  Their eyes trained on their girl with long black hair and turquoise eyes. It had been a while since they had checked in on their first success at creating a Siren.  She had been the one that had springboarded their entire project.

She was going to lead the others once they had her back in their grasp. 

She and the ones she was with were currently going through the files on the super soldiers they had tried to create.  They were all sitting in the common room of the Avengers’ compound, Mina was looking pensive as she read over a file about herself.

Shinsky was only watching Mina while the others were watching her friends.  Shinsky could tell he had gotten inside her head, and he was hoping that would make her sloppy, that she would start to second guess herself.

He knew she was loyal to the people she cared about, and he knew they could use that to their advantage.  He was already formulating a plan on how to get her back, and her friends were going to be the bait. 

“What are we going to do now?”  Maris Morlak asked as he looked at his fellow scientist and fellow leader of the Enclave.  “They know we want her now that you blabbed it to them.”   


The other two scientists nodded in agreement.  They didn’t know what Shinsky had been thinking when he had told the Avengers who he was and what Mina meant to their little organization.  They had thought he was being reckless by doing this, but Shinsky had a plan, and he just needed the others to have a little faith in him. 

Wladyslav Shinsky merely grinned, “That was the point.  They will be trying to protect her now, they see her as one of their own, and they’re all foolish enough to believe they can keep her safe.  James Barnes is in love with her and will do almost anything to keep her safe. Give it time my friends, the Avengers will slip up and she will be ours once again. We just have to be patient.”   


The others didn’t know what Wladyslav had in mind, but for right now they would trust him, and they hoped they would get their experiment back soon before she would be the downfall of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next part of this rewrite series will be Siren Song, but I don't know when I'll start posting it. I think I have four chapters rewritten right now? I want to rewrite a few more before I start posting it. Also I want to finish Siren's Lullaby in the original series before I continue on with this one.


End file.
